It’s been a month since Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at Utah Valley University. His widow, Erika Kirk, has taken over his non-profit, Turning Point USA. On Tuesday, she attended the White House as President Trump posthumously awarded Charlie the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Trump called Kirk “a fearless warrior for liberty, beloved leader who galvanized the next generation like nobody I’ve ever seen before, and an American patriot of the deepest conviction, the finest quality, and the highest caliber.” He condemned Kirk’s killing as a “horrible, heinous, demonic act of murder” and described him as a “martyr” for speaking his truth.

Erika accepted the medal on what would have been Charlie’s 32nd birthday. She said, “The very existence of the Presidential Medal of Freedom reminds us that the national interest of the United States has always been freedom… The blessings of liberty are not man’s invention. They are God’s endowment.”

She shared personal memories, noting Charlie’s love for the small joys, like their birthday tradition of mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Erika tearfully read their daughter Gigi’s birthday note: “Happy birthday, daddy. I want to give you a stuffed animal. I want you to eat a cupcake with ice cream. And I want you to go have a birthday surprise. I love you.” The stuffed animal symbolized their special bond, which Charlie carried on his show as a piece of Gigi with him.