With news continuing to pour in related to the shooting of conservative pundit Charlie Kirk, Madeline Gaudreau is asking followers to consider Kirk’s family when sharing information online.
“As a mom walking alongside grief…while navigating the aftermath of what has happened to my husband and brother in law my #1 priority is ensuring I fight to keep sensitive information off the Internet to protect my son – my nieces and nephews,” she wrote via her Instagram Story on Thursday, September 11. “Please I beg you all do not reshare – view – comment on anything that will damage Charlie’s family/Friends. Let’s help to protect them.”
Madeline’s husband, Matthew Gaudreau, was killed alongside his brother, professional hockey player Johnny Gaudreau, in August 2024 when an alleged drunk driver struck the pair while they were riding their bicycles in Oldmans Township, New Jersey. They were 31 and 29, respectively.
Madeline welcomed the couple’s son Tripp four months later. Johnny and his wife, Meredith, shared daughter Noa, born in 2022, and son Johnny Jr., born in 2024, at the time of his death. She gave birth to the couple’s third baby, son Carter, eight months after the accident.
Kirk died at age 31 on Wednesday, September 10, when a gunman shot him during an event at Utah Valley University. He leaves behind wife Erika Frantzve, a 3-year-old daughter and a 16-month-old son.
In the aftermath of the shooting, graphic videos of the incident circulated on social media showing the moment of impact.
“My heart aches for this family 🤍,” Madeline also wrote via her Instagram Story alongside a photo of the Turning Point USA founder kissing his wife while the couple held their two kids.
“Every one of us at Turning Point USA is crushed and devastated by the hateful murder of our founder and guiding light, Charlie Kirk,” the organization shared via X on Thursday. “All of us have lost a leader, a mentor and a friend. Above all, our hearts are with Erika and their two children. Charlie was the ideal husband and the perfect father. Above all else, we ask you to pray for the Kirks after the incomprehensible loss they have suffered.”
Matthew Gaudreau and his wife, Madeline Gaudreau, were together for nearly 15 years — and married three — before his untimely death. “Best 14 years of my life 🤍 I will cherish those years and you for the rest of my life,” Madeline wrote via Instagram in September 2024 days after her husband and his […]
In addition, politicians on both sides of the aisle released statements condemning the shooting and offering their support to Kirk’s family.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” President Donald Trump wrote via Truth Social. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and today, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
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