Grief choked the voice of Katelin Price, a sophomore at Southeastern University, as she pondered the death of Charlie Kirk, a man whose message first stirred her when she was 10 years old.
Price, 19, is president of the Lakeland school’s chapter of Turning Point USA, the conservative organization that Kirk founded in 2012. Price said that she had been speaking with fellow members of the chapter and taking part in a group chat with leaders of other chapters.
“And just making sure that we continue to boost each other up as a community,” Price said. “We’re all suffering through this massive loss, and so just making sure that we’re there for each other.”
Kirk, 31, died Sept. 10 after being shot as he prepared to speak at an event at Utah Valley University.
Price said she individually met Kirk twice, first when she joined other Southeastern students at a stop in Tampa on Kirk’s American Comeback Tour last spring. She encountered Kirk again at a chapter leadership summit this summer, again in Tampa.
At the tour event, Price and other chapter members volunteered to lead “disagreers” toward a microphone, so that they could speak directly to Kirk. She and other students also participated in America Fest, a gathering organized by Turning Point USA in Phoenix, Arizona, and she attended a student action summit over the summer.
Price, who hails from Jacksonville, said she began following Kirk before the 2016 election, when he was supporting Donald Trump, the Republican candidate.
“I think, for me, it was just the way he speaks, the way that he communicates and opens for free-flowing thought and just critical thinking,” Price said. “And then, when you watch his videos, he doesn’t ever belittle anybody. He doesn’t make them feel stupid for having their views. But it really is just like a logical, reasonable discussion.”
The most important connection, Price said, is that she shares Kirk’s Christian convictions.
“I think that Charlie was a phenomenal man of God, who, any chance he had, he had the opportunity of sharing the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, and hopefully leading people to him,” Price said. “And while he acknowledged that, yes, politics were important, his main idea was that Jesus Christ is Lord and until everyone turns to him, the world is going to be continued in chaos.”
Southeastern held a vigil and worship session the evening of Sept. 10 in response to Kirk’s killing, Price said. The school’s president, Kent Ingle, announced that counseling would be available for anyone who needs it.
“We don’t mourn as people with no hope, but we can rejoice in the fact that we all believe that Charlie is with Jesus,” Price said. “And so, we just prayed for him and his family, as they have to navigate unimaginable loss, I mean, his poor wife and two young kids.”
The membership of the Southeastern chapter varies, but Price said that about 200 students attended a watch party the chapter hosted for the presidential election in 2024.
Price, who is majoring in legal studies and political science, considered whether Kirk’s murder could spawn further political violence. She said she was discouraged by video that showed people celebrating Kirk’s death and by online comments from some saying that Kirk had it coming, presumably for his positions on gun rights.
“Charlie has a phenomenal quote that says, ‘When we stop speaking on disagreeable topics, that’s when violence occurs,’” Price said. “And I think that that has been shown through his case. Specifically, it’s like, if you can’t debate him and you can’t argue with reason, then where are we supposed to turn, to just shooting each other?”
But Price said she and other TPUSA leaders are determined to advance Kirk’s cause.
“I hope that Turning Point is a movement. I hope that his legacy does not go in vain,” she said. “I hope that we can all pick up the torch, that we can be bolder in our proclamation of what we’re fighting for — for freedom of speech, for free markets, for capitalism, for the First Amendment rights. And so, I think for a lot of us, this has just emboldened us to want to speak out more and to be bolder when it comes to standing by our values.”
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Student at Southeastern in Lakeland recalls meeting Charlie Kirk, a longtime role model
Reporting by Gary White, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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