Editor’s note: The story has been updated to clarify the organizers of the event.
UKIAH, CA., 9/22/25 — At Todd Grove Park in the west side of Ukiah, where residents often hold celebratory events, there was a more somber occasion Sunday. More than 300 people gathered for a vigil at the park to mourn Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated earlier this month while speaking at Utah Valley University.
On the vibrant green grass near the main stage at Todd Grove Park, a vigil for Kirk was held at 7:30 p.m. Sunday. Organized by local community members such as Angle Ricord Slater who framed the vigil as a bipartisan gathering, the event honored Kirk, founder of the youth conservative organization Turning Point USA. He was also known for touring college campuses like the one where he was shot Sept. 10.
Attendees at Sunday’s event were carrying memorial signs, American flags, and flameless candles as worship music played throughout the park.
Church leaders, standing on stage in front of a large screen displaying images of Kirk and his family, delivered speeches about Kirk’s values and how his message to American people will be continued after his death.
Many attendees revered Kirk’s speeches as some of the most eloquent prose they had heard on Christian faith. A few people at the vigil praised Kirk’s remarks on the role that Christianity should play in American society, especially his statements that young people — especially young women — should focus more on having children and raising a family and less on starting careers.
Several women spoke about their connection to Kirk and why they were mourning the Christian activist’s passing.
“I’ve recently re-found Jesus Christ,” said Trina Warner, a local woman who attended the event with her dog, Milo. Warner said that the killing of Kirk felt like an attack on her beliefs. “It was almost like an assault on Christians. I felt like my faith was being attacked.”
Warner spoke about how the vigil was a surreal but special moment for the Christian community to come together.
“It’s strange, it feels like 9/11, these people coming together and building community more,” Warner said. “We could have all gone in our shell and been quiet, or we could just be true and be open and teach people. I feel like Christians are speaking up.”
The atmosphere of the vigil was filled with sorrow and grief, but as the event continued, there were glimpses of hope from the crowd that Kirk’s death would build a stronger faith-based community here and across the country.
“It was amazing to come and see all of the people here,” said Shayne Martini, who attended the vigil with her daughter, Anila. “We need to come together, and I am praying that this will bring us together and we can bring Kirk’s message that he was trying to get out there.”
Martini, who has lived in Ukiah her entire life, said Kirk’s death had a profound impact on her even though she did not know him personally.
“I cried for three days. I’ve never sobbed for somebody I didn’t know before,” Martini emphasized. “It made my heart warm to see all of these people.”
Martini said she hopes that Kirk’s death will further unify the Christian community, especially those who have opposing political views.
“I am hoping this will bring us more together and we can unite as a people,” Martini said. “We should all be able to coexist, if you’re Democrat or Republican. It’s okay if you like someone that’s different than who I like. It shouldn’t matter what side you are on.”
Kirk was not someone to be celebrated in life or in death. He was a master of mainstreaming hateful and white supremacist views, and was antagonistic to just about every minority group under the sun. I do wonder how many of the media outlets covering the mourning of his passing have bothered to familiarize themselves with his beliefs. Here’s a sampling, in his own words:
“MLK was awful. He’s not a good person. He said one good thing he actually didn’t believe.”
“prowling blacks go around for fun to go target white people”
“ We need to have a Nuremberg-style trial for every gender-affirming clinic doctor. We need it immediately.”
“ The great replacement strategy, which is well under way every single day in our southern border, is a strategy to replace white rural America with something different.”
Regarding that last one: I believe the diversity of Mendocino County is a big part of what makes it such a great place. Sounds like he would have hated it here, and that’s something to be proud of.
I wonder how many people even knew what Charlie Kirk stood up for. That behind all his fast speaking and quick rebounds there was a very hatful man. He didn’t really hide the fact that he felt men were superior to women. That women should be having children and caring for them and their husbands who had careers. I personally heard him say that MLK was a horrible person. He didn’t really debate at college campuses, what he did was out speak his opponent by means of unproven facts, talking over and being louder than his opponent. He had the ability to fluster the young students who fumbled their point and then Charlie ran them over. The one that was evil was his view of black women. Stating they were inferior because they lacked the ability to be intellectually superior (don’t quote me but it was pretty close to that). Not all being said, killing someone is never ok but all this praise really seems misplaced. He wasn’t a hero nor a saint.
Kirk’s fundamental belief that is rooted in White Christian Nationalism “White Replacement Theory”; that blacks and Mexicans are in an underground movement to Replace Whites in America by over and outproducing White people. This has been the theory of White Supremest Groups going back several generations. This is why Kirk’s movement was aimed at getting young white girls to drop out of college and go have babies. He claimed women going to college was against God’s will for them thus they were not following God. Kirk reduced women to incubators to birth white humans. You can just google Kirk and White Replacement Theory on YouTube and see and hear it from his own mouth instead of taking my word for it or denying the truth. This is all a part of Project 2025.
Comments herein contain a lot of incendiary hyperbole and leftist hate against Charlie Kirk. Noticeably absent is any concern for the threat of violence against free speech, (especially conservative speech), and the growing threat of violent pro-trans militancy. However, it is encouraging to see a peaceful gathering anywhere in California that supports religious freedom. It is extremely rare and never acknowledged by the news media. To think, it happened right here in Ukiah! There is hope for us after all.
Dave’s claim of leftist incendiary comments is rich, considering the fact that most of the posts use Kirk’s own words, or paraphrase his words. Charlie’s words were incendiary, and far-right in ideology (fascist). This is not a criticism. It is merely fact that Dave and others might not like.
Kirks words are not being taken out of context. He was spreading hate and a fascist ideology with a smile. He wasn’t a self-made man; he was a billionaire’s creation… to propagandize college kids.
His shtick was ambush by nature. He flew a banner stating “prove me wrong”. He brought a camera crew to film an adult, with life experience, debate children with no life experience. He dominated the discussions, and used tactics generally used by demagogues. That’s about it. He spread hatred.
I understand evangelical Christians might view it differently, but they are partisan and lack objectivity. The fascist virus infecting America, in part, spread through the evangelical churches.
One way to annoy conservatives (e.g., Dave above) is to quote their heroes. For example, Charlie Kirk, lover of Jesus, said: “I can’t stand the word empathy, actually […] I think empathy is a made-up, new age term that does a lot of damage.”
Or: “Black women do not have brain processing power to be taken seriously. You have to go steal a white person’s slot.”
Or: “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, ‘Boy, I hope he’s qualified.’”
Or: “I’m not a fan of retirement. I don’t think retirement is biblical.”
He was a garbage human being and I don’t need hyperbole to demonstrate that fact.
This man was a victim to his own mentality is all I’ll say. More of an irony and I have no empathy for the man given his track record being alive. I see this the same way a dare devil pops wheelies at dangerous speeds on a regular basis and his luck was just running out.
A millionaire twelve times over by age 31 and Trump hugging your widowed wife — his brand of mean hatred paid off handsomely no matter what you say.
Ethically challenged: Denigration of a victim of violence is reprehensible. Have you no moral compass to guide you?
Yo, Dave my man … I’m stating facts and you are calling ME ethically challenged? No wonder Trump said he loves the uneducated.
If nothing else, this thread illustrates the dangerous schism occurring in the general population. It worse than pro sports fanatics, and as mindless, with more important things at stake.
All the vitriol aimed at Kirk doesn’t negate the apparent fact that a lot of our fellows here see things differently. It could be worthwhile to soberly consider what that might mean.
Acknowledging & condemning Kirk’s hateful agenda is not ‘celebrating’ or ‘endorsing’ his death. Since his demise, his fans have been rushing to skew the facts & rewrite the truth. Now, simply quoting Kirk’s words causes them to have a meltdown.
He was an insufferable racist, misogynist & a farce. His rhetoric was a blatant corruption of the true teachings of Christ.
He openly hated empathy & now that many people refuse to be empathic to him, some are losing their minds over it. Ridiculous!
Do you know what it’s like to be the only one who understands a complex problem? It’s aggravating as h. What no one can see is that the vicious war of freedom of religion and freedom from religion continues today just like it has since the 1200’s. All of this Kirk person’s hateful rhetoric was him feeling that is religion is under attack and that his type of people are struggling to maintain their religious lives in today’s cultural landscape. Meanwhile, his critics are feeling under attack from religious activists and they worry about their freedom FROM religion because they absolutely don’t want to go back to religious government and religious diktat. This war is as old as recorded history and yet today we don’t collectively see it for what it really is rendering us impotent to do anything about it. You have to know what exactly you are fighting if you want to win. Our society is so clueless about this it’s pathetic. Separate but equal needs to be revisited if harmony is ever to return to this country. If the extremes of each side weren’t trying to shove their beliefs down the others throats 24/7 via corporate media sponsorship maybe people would calm down. They are never going to agree on the speed of cultural change. Reds want it to slow down and blues want it sped up. It’s up to the moderate blues to slow the far left down a bit with their demands for societal change and the moderate reds need to be responsible for speeding up the far right who REALLY think things are moving too fast. Neither side can escape the perceived violations of the other side and the pressure is building because of this. A successful president would unite the country by protecting the beliefs of the extremists from each side. Neither side can be judged as wrong and they are never ever going to change into what the other side wants them to be. A revisited separate but equal amendment could allow for a bit more cultural separation within our borders. Very progressive people should be able to live in an area where they feel supported and safe and very traditional people should be able to live somewhere where they can realize their traditional lifestyle and follow their traditions. Our good intentioned anti discrimination laws unfortunately attempt to mold every one of us into the exact same copy and that has got us where we are today filled with hate. Aside from all of the above a man was shot to death. That is a terrible terrible thing. It is a warning to all of us to knock it off. The citizens of the USA have every bit of the power if they unite against a foe. This is why big money and old power works every single day to keep us divided and submissive to their parasitism.