Coach Jordan Smith

We are living in a nightmare. I tried to write this 100 times yesterday and couldn’t finish. There are so many things about Charlie our grieving hearts want to say. A husband, father, boss, brother, son, and friend was assassinated in cold blood doing what he loved because he was a Christian, a conservative, and a champion of open dialogue and debate. Charlie and I are the same age. Graduated high school the same year. But it always felt like he was so much older. For the last six years, Charlie has been one of the most extraordinary bosses I’ve ever had. Charlie was born to be a leader. All of us who worked with him figured likely even president at some point. What was special about him was that he still believed this country could be saved. I know Vice President Vance posted about this, but it’s true. Not only did we win many states, and the election as a whole because of Charlie in 2024, but a large part of the White House staff is there because of calls Charlie made. He was fiercely loyal to everyone who knew him and surrounded him. If you saw him in the office, he always did one of two things: 1.Congratulated you on some accomplishment you didn’t even know he knew about, or 2.Asked you for a progress update on what you were working on. Since childhood, he was laser-focused on his mission to save America and protect freedom: the very freedoms that allowed the kinds of discussions he was senselessly murdered for having, before our eyes. He was filled with integrity. I’ve never heard him even swear. His career accomplishments were unmatched. But his most proud accomplishment, and he would have told you this, was his marriage to Erika, and being a dad. Charlie was completely fearless. He took an immense risk on me and allowed me to launch TPUSA’s first-ever show. He gave me complete and total creative freedom. When I asked him last summer if I could rebrand to Culture Apothecary, he said: “You have been nothing but loyal to us. I trust you.” I am so thankful that a few weeks ago we recorded what will be our last ever episode together on his show talking about that story. All of your favorite young conservative commentators are here and do this because of Charlie Kirk. He was the first. He is the original. But he never acted like it. He wanted to see hundreds of thousands rise up and work alongside him. He was never arrogant, boastful, or proud. Never jealous. Always selfless. Always kind. When Charlie knew that Rfk Jr. was coming on stage and endorsing Trump last August, he surprised me by offering me a chance to meet Trump backstage beforehand and sit front row for the announcement. I had no idea that was all happening. But he did. And he knew it would mean the world to me. When I achieved anything great, or a news outlet published a favorable write-up, he’d send me the link and say: “Great work. We need the women. Keep going.” I ran into Charlie at Whole Foods often. He loved Lily’s chocolate. I like Hu. And he’d tease me about which chocolate was better. Whenever people asked me what conservative podcasts I liked, I’d always say Charlie’s. And I’d clarify: “Not because he’s my boss. Because he’s the smartest of all. He always knows what we should do…and he gets it right.” Talking with other public friends yesterday who do this work, we all agreed: we are terrified. We have been terrorized. You should not have had to see what we had to see thousands of times, scrolling social media yesterday in between looking for information. I pray for God’s protection of Erika and those two children who will only know their dad in videos and pictures. We owe them to strengthen his legacy now. This is an injustice of the highest degree.