ASU chapter of Turning Point USA hosts vigil honoring conservative activist Charlie Kirk

PHOENIX — Arizona State University’s chapter of Turning Point USA held a vigil for Charlie Kirk at Desert Financial Arena in Tempe on Monday evening.

Thousands of people, including students and the general public, registered to attend the event honoring the organization’s late co-founder.

Several notable speakers were announced for the event, including Turning Point Action Chief Operating Officer Tyler Bowyer, 2018 Winter Olympian Anthony Watson and conservative activist Jack Posobiec.

Crowds of mourners attended Charlie Kirk vigil at ASU Tempe campus

Before the scheduled speeches kicked off at 5:30 p.m., crowds approached the arena, but one man stood out among the other mourners: Dan Beazley, who brought a 10-foot-tall cross.

“My mission is to shine light in the darkness, and that’s what the cross does,” Beazley told KTAR News 92.3 FM.

Beazley, moved by Kirk’s Christian faith, said the cross also symbolized their shared beliefs.

“This man believed in the same things that I believe in,” Beazley said. “He believed in the cross with his whole heart, and so do I. And then he died for it, took a bullet for it.”

The scale of mourning extended beyond the vigil itself, as national figures paid tribute in the days leading up to the event.

Air Force Two flew Kirk’s body to Arizona last week. Vice President JD Vance escorted the casket, along with Kirk’s family.

Kirk’s funeral is scheduled to be held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale. Doors for the service will open at 8 a.m. Sunday and the program will begin at 11 a.m.

“There are a million pieces of him out in the world,” Beazley said. “It’s just gonna grow infinitely.”

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Balin Overstolz McNair contributed to this report.

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