Before sitting down to share a barbecue meal, Gregg and Sheri Eichwedel brought a thank-you note and flowers to 217 1/2 Illinois St. in Lemont to pay their respects to conservative political activist Charlie Kirk.
The longtime Lemont residents have the flag outside of their house at half-staff in remembrance of Kirk, who was shot and killed last September at Utah Valley University.
Gregg Eichwedel said down the road from them lived the late Bill Montgomery, co-founder of Turning Point USA, a conservative student organization spearheaded by Kirk. The organization’s first office is located not too far from the Eichwedels’ home.
“You see pictures of Lemont, Illinois flashing on national news. … It’s very, very cool,” Gregg Eichwedel said.
The Eichwedels were among dozens of people who gathered Thursday night at Matt’s BBQ Lemont for a Charlie Kirk Memorial watch party that featured student speeches and a livestream of Utah Valley University’s ceremony.
Kirk, 31, originally from Arlington Heights, made a name for himself as a conservative political activist and podcaster after dropping out of college by hosting debates at college campuses.
Since he founded Turning Point USA in 2012, hundreds of chapters have been created at high schools, colleges and universities across the country, according to the organization’s website.
The organization aims to educate young people about conservative and Christian beliefs and encourage them to become leaders, the organization’s website states.
Leslie Mendoza, South Chicago field representative of Turning Point USA, said Kirk was like a brother to her.
More Top Picks Best Garage Floor Mats For Parking
“He was the exact same person in front of 500,000 people that he was when talking with one single student,” Mendoza said during her speech.
Mendoza said she founded the Turning Point USA chapter in Lyons Township after Kirk took her under his wing.
As Turning Point USA become more popular, so did Kirk. But some of his supporters have been with him since the beginning.
Barbara Dixon, a longtime Lemont resident, said she was a day one supporter of Kirk. When she found out about Thursday’s gathering, she made a plan to show up in her “freedom” shirt, even though her husband, also a Kirk supporter, could not join her.
The 69-year-old said she enjoyed feeling a sense of community at the restaurant, surrounded by others dressed in either Kirk’s merchandise or patriotic outfits and whose heads were down during prayer.
She said she loved watching his debates and hearing him speak.
“The main thing about him was the amount of information he had in his brain and how he could express it,” Dixon said.
Dixon said she acknowledges that Kirk is controversial and that not everyone agrees with him.
Kirk was a prominent ally and close friend of President Donald Trump, and his organization played a prominent role in supporting Trump’s 2016, 2020 and 2024 campaigns.
During the 2023-2024 election cycle, Turning Point PAC contributed in $872,814 in independent expenditures and communication costs to Trump, data from OpenSecrets showed.
Kirk was also outspoken about his controversial political views during debates and podcasts, such as his pro-life and anti-gun control stances, criticism of LGBTQ+ and person of color rights and conservative opinions about the roles of women.
Amanda Szulc, treasurer for the Joliet Township Republican Organization and Will County coordinator for the Darren Bailey gubernatorial campaign, said Kirk is the reason she got into politics.
“For so long, I was hiding behind privacy settings and not willing to talk about it, and after what happened to him, I saw the mask fall off,” Szulc said.
Szulc said she liked how Kirk engaged with young students and said he helped inspire many of them to share their beliefs.
For others, Kirk’s views on Christianity and God stuck the most with them.
Samantha Nicastro, a student at Lincoln-Way West High School and member of Club America, the high school affiliate name for Turning Point, said Kirk’s faith has helped guide her. She said she hopes future chapter leaders will be unafraid to speak about their faith.
Regardless of how people feel about him, Gregg Eichwedel said he hopes that Kirk will be remembered in years to come.