Melrose Patriots Host Charlie Kirk Vigil
MELROSE, Fla. A large crowd organized by the Melrose Patriots group held a vigil Sunday night at Heritage Park for the recently killed Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
Melrose is a small unincorporated town located east of Gainesville on the dividing lines of Alachua, Bradford, Clay and Putnam counties.
The vigil, which coincidentally fell on International Day of Peace, heard from numerous speakers, including Bradford County GOP Committeeman Tom Germano, Bradford County Sheriff Gordon Smith and the head pastor of Keystone Heights Methodist Church, JT Taylor.
A flyer advertising the vigil calls Kirk “remarkable” and says, “We must learn patience, feel compassion and show respect for our fellow man… We must tolerate those on the left and right who don’t agree with us.”
In a speech, Germano stated, “On the eve of 9/11, one of the worst days in American history, our nation was once again shaken by the senseless killing of a young man who had become a phenomenon on college campuses, a champion of open debate and free speech. Charlie Kirk was just 31 years old and left behind his wife, three-year-old daughter and a son that just turned one.”
Germano continued, “Just minutes before he was shot in the neck and killed, he was sharing 2 Corinthians 5:15, ‘He died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.’ He went on to explain that verse meant Jesus’ death was a sacrifice for everyone, and in response to the sacrifice, believers are meant to change their focus from living for themselves to living for Christ, who died and was resurrected for their sake.”
Germano called for an end to political violence, saying, “We've witnessed two assassination attempts on President Trump, the killing of a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in Minnesota, an arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's home, and now the assassination of Charlie Kirk… It appears we are trying to settle politics with bullets. That’s not the way to do it.”
Germano said he briefly met Kirk at a meet-and-greet and said he was nice and apologetic about the long line. Germano said he started following Kirk’s content after the interaction.
Sheriff Smith said, “The only thing we should fear is Jesus, God Himself; that we shall never fear man. I can think of a lot more cruel ways of dying than an assassin’s bullet. That would be going to my grave knowing I didn’t do everything to keep my children and my grandchildren from being enslaved by those who would like to take our liberties and our freedoms from us. Charlie Kirk was that fighter for young people to change a generation. He is the mark of the king of this generation, the civil rights fighter that has fought for our freedoms of open debate.”
Smith called the crowd “patriots and freedom lovers” and said, “Charlie never tucked his tongue, which I’ve been accused of that getting me in trouble a lot of times.”
Smith said, “[Kirk] was not murdered because of what he was saying. He was assassinated because we were listening.”
Smith continued, “This was not an accident; this was political violence. This was an attempt to silence by force what ought to be won through discussion. That scares those out there that wish to overtake our country, make us socialist or communism, and take our liberties away.”
Smith concluded, “We must rise. We must redouble our commitment to defending every American's right to speak, to protest, or disagree without fear. We must demand protection for those who use their voices in the pursuit of truth, justice, and faith. We must refuse the lie that violence is ever an answer to an idea. That’s where Charlie was so valuable, so intelligent… filled with books and knowledge that he could debate openly, freely, and he would take on anybody that wanted to challenge him… To Ericka and Charlie’s children, your loss is America’s loss, and we mourn with you… Let us pledge this day on this sacred ground in his memory, we will turn the point, we will prove them wrong and we will reclaim our republic… May we honor him not with our silence, but with a roar.”
Pastor Taylor said, “The assassination of Charlie Kirk is a prime example of total depravity. I became aware of Charlie Kirk by watching those videos of him on college campuses. I had not ever heard of him until I started seeing these videos. This man would stand on college campuses and invite dialogue with people, and oftentimes they did not agree with what he had to say.”
Taylor said people accused Kirk of being “hateful, racist and bigoted,” but that he “never witnessed any of that.”
Taylor said Kirk targeted college campuses because they are “breeding grounds for leftist theologies.”
“[Kirk] presented Christian values and traditional American values, so people argued,” said Taylor. “But look, we live in a time of polarization. The battle lines are drawn. They're clearly drawn. But so many people have been swayed over to one side or the other without understanding the implications of their thought patterns, of their ideologies. There are second- and third-order effects. There are implications to the things that we think and believe.”
Taylor went on to say, “We’re tempted to fight back. I hear calls for an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth and all of that. It's heartbreaking to think about what happened to him, what's happening to his wife and his kids, what's happening to our country. We think if it can happen to him, what about me? What if I stand up for America? What if I stand up for traditional American values? What if I stand up for Christ? Am I going to be the next target? And so, we're tempted to take out vengeance, take it in our own hands, and fight back. Let me share something with you. Jesus taught a better way… He taught us to stay the course, to pray, to continue on without fear and to trust Him. I should probably remind you that we are involved in a great war. It is a war going on all around us. But it is a spiritual war. It is a war not seen with our natural eyes; it is seen with our spiritual eyes… The evil one has deceived countless numbers, and they are shrouded in darkness. It is our job to shed the light, shed the truth, and to be honest, that’s what Charlie tried to do… I think we are on the precipice of a great revival. College campuses are about to bust wide open with the Gospel of Christ.”
Taylor stood in front of a tub of holy water during his speech and offered attendees the opportunity to be baptized, with several taking him up on the offer.
Germano said he wanted to “thank the Melrose Patriots for their great work” and indicated that over 400 people attended the vigil, saying they had 400 candles to distribute and ran out.
Who Are The Melrose Patriots?
The Melrose Patriots website doesn’t appear to be active, but it does offer information on the group.
According to their website, “The Melrose Patriots are a spontaneously formed, grass-roots group of citizens who love America and work to preserve our country in the way our Founding Fathers intended… While many of the members of the Melrose Patriots have like-minded beliefs, we believe that diversity of beliefs is what made this country possible, strong, and resilient. It is important that our community knows that we embrace different opinions and enjoy the opportunity to discuss and even respectfully debate them. We invite all to come and talk to us whenever you see us around town.”
According to their website, in April 2021, the Melrose Patriots hosted an event with Mossman Hall titled “Rebel Patriots of the 1800s. What you need to know and why the South was right.”
The webpage that advertised the event states, “This is a historical presentation discussing history. Accusations of racism and white supremacy will not be tolerated.”
The “Rebel Patriots” event coincides with multiple posts on Facebook accusing the Melrose Patriots of being a white supremacy organization.
One post states, “If you check the presenter Nansea Markham's FB page, the first post is a photo of a locket with a photo of Nathan Bedford Forrest, a Confederate Army general and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Her post is captioned ‘It is time to wear our heroes.’”
Another post, targeted at Mossman Hall, states they are “hosting a white supremacist group, the Melrose Patriots, who celebrate the enslavement of Black people. Their board members have been unresponsive to protests and are distributing private emails to the Patriots, who are doxxing local activists and publishing their business and personal info on the Patriots' page.”
The Melrose Patriots website contains a post from June 2021 titled “Melrose Patriots are Infamous!” The webpage contains a link to a clip from Alex Jones’ show Infowars, which he ran until he was ordered to liquidate the asset to assist in paying an over $1 billion debt he was ordered to give Sandy Hook victims’ families for claiming the shooting was fake.
Steve Pieczenik says the Melrose Patriots participated in January 6 (Infowars)
The clip Melrose Patriots promoted shows former Deputy Secretary of State Steve Pieczenik, who frequently appeared on Infowars, saying, “They implicate people in the false flag of January 6. There was no assassination, there was no riots. I happen to know people in this area called Melrose Patriots who found it to be very quiet, and they enjoyed coming there. They spent 12 or 20 hours going by bus or train, and they wanted to basically support Trump.”
