TRAVERSE CITY — Northern Michigan residents gathered at the Open Space in downtown Traverse City Sunday evening for a candlelit vigil in memory of conservative activist Charlie Kirk who was shot and killed last week.
Thousands of mourners have been gathering at rallies and vigils across the country after Kirk’s death last Wednesday at a Turning Point USA “Prove Me Wrong” public debate on the Utah Valley University campus in Orem, Utah.
Traverse City Young Republicans President Lauren Pauly and Northern Michigan University’s Turning Point USA President Evan Reister helped organize Sunday’s vigil near downtown Traverse City.
Pauly estimated that more than 1,000 people were in attendance.
“The candlelight vigil is about more than just remembering Charlie, it’s about honoring the impact he had on so many of us,” Pauly said in an email Monday. “Coming together in this way allows us to grieve, but also to find strength in our shared values and in each other.”
According to local resident Marcus Mead, who attended with his stepson, 18, and his daughter, 21, the vigil was a peaceful event where attendees stood “elbow to elbow” to listen to speeches from Reister, Pauly and an opening prayer from Pastor Daniel LeCouteur.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” Mead said when he arrived. “The most powerful part of the evening for me was the music.”
The crowd sang the national anthem, “America the Beautiful” and “Amazing Grace.” They also sang “How Great Thou Art,” a popular church hymn that Mead said he used to sing to his daughter when she was an infant.
“She was there with me and I just put my arm around her,” Mead said. “Because Charlie’s not going to have a chance to do that now. He left behind some very, very young kids and so for me, personally, that song had a pretty meaningful impact.”
Mead said the importance of a public vigil for Kirk, his widow and their two children, was done in the spirit of honoring Kirk’s contributions.
“Whether we realize it or not, as Americans we’re suffering loss from what he offered and what he could have brought to us,” Mead said. “An opportunity to come together and make sure that’s not forgotten. That’s really important that we do that.”
Mead said a group of protesters were present during the vigil, standing on the corners of Union and Front streets. Their signs referenced Palestine and the country’s debate about gun control reform.
“They were very respectful,” Mead said. “They weren’t shouting insulting things. … I think that Charlie would be very, very honored that they came, even if it was to protest, because freedom of speech is something that we’ve kind of lost track of as a nation.”
Many of the attendees also took time to approach the law enforcement officers who were providing security during the vigil and to thank them for their service, he noted.
“What really struck me was the number of people, myself included … who just took time to say, ‘Hey, thank you for being here,’” Mead said.
President Donald Trump announced that Kirk is expected to be posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance escorted Kirk’s casket and his widow, Erika, on Air Force Two on Thursday back to their home in Arizona.
The Michigan Republican Party organized a rally to honor Kirk Monday afternoon on the east lawn near the Capitol in Lansing.
According to the Detroit Free Press, state Sen. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, the chairman of the state GOP, said in a news release that the rally was intended to “celebrate (Kirk’s) phenomenal achievements, to grieve together and to commit ourselves to carrying forward the mission he championed so fiercely.”
According to multiple media outlets, Kirk’s memorial service is scheduled for Sunday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.