On October 14th, local time, US President Donald Trump held a ceremony to award the Medal of Freedom for Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist who was previously assassinated, in the Rose Garden of the White House to commemorate his 32nd birthday.
Kirk's widow, Erika Kirk, who received the honor for her late husband, couldn't help but burst into tears from the podium when she spoke of Kirk's birthday celebration while he was alive, and the mother-of-two said, "President Trump, I spent seven and a half years trying to pick the perfect birthday present for Charlie, but it's just too hard because he's not a material person, so it doesn't help either."
36-year-old Erika, wearing a black long robe and a beautiful haircut, continued, “But now I can confidently tell you, Mr. President, that this birthday present you gave him is the best gift he has ever received.”
According to reports, at about 3 a.m. that day, Trump traveled thousands of miles back to the United States from the Middle East just to attend the posthumous ceremony. He told everyone here, "I flew back to the other side of the world. I originally planned to call Erica and ask her, 'Can you change the date to Friday?'" "But in the end I didn't have the courage to make this call. Do you know why I didn't call? Because I heard today is Charlie's birthday..."
In addition, Trump also recalled the first time he met Kirk. The 79-year-old president shared,"When I first met him, he was only about 22 years old. I said: 'This guy is too old.' But in my heart, I actually think he should be older than his actual age... He is very special."
Meanwhile, Trump also revealed that Kirk was very happy with her before marrying Erika, and he excitedly told Trump, “You don’t imagine how beautiful she is.”
Under the stage, Kirk's parents just watched all this silently, and the pain of losing their son was self-evident. However, the day was not all sad. Erica and Trump were photographed laughing before they walked hand in hand to the podium.
It is reported that after Kirk's unfortunate death, Erica took over her husband's position and became the CEO of "American Turning Point".
And Erica’s stubbornness also made Trump see, who had previously praised Erica at the commemoration, “We know the pain of this enormous loss is really unbearable.” “But even in the midst of sorrow and unimaginable pain, you have found strength and firm conviction to bring comfort to millions.”