News/Commentary

Disabled lawmaker walks three miles on crutches to reach Charlie Kirk’s funeral

September 23, 2025 | | Print Article

A disabled Wyoming Republican walked three miles on crutches to reach and attend Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk’s funeral/memorial service on Sunday.

Meet Wyoming state. Rep. Scott Smith. He suffers from a congenital birth defect in his left leg known as Proteus Syndrome with Lymph Hemangioma. The condition is known to cause serious mobility issues.

Despite these mobility issues, Smith walked three miles on crutches this Sunday through “huge throngs of people” and “as the day’s temperature crept from 85 degrees at 5:30 am to a high of 103 degrees,” according to Cowboy StateDaily.

And he did so all to reach Kirk’s funeral on time.

The trip started on Saturday, when Smith and his wife flew to Arizona from Wyoming. The following morning, before sunrise, they began what started out as a car trip to the funeral at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale.

There was just one problem. Smith told Cowboy StateDaily that by 5:00 am Sunday morning, all the roads leading to the stadium were gridlocked. Plus, nearby parking lots were off-limits, and the handicap parking lot was completely full.

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Running out of time and options, Smith and his wife decided to park their vehicle where it got stuck in traffic about 2.5 miles away from the stadium and walk the rest of the way.

“It was a significant decision for Smith, who uses crutches full-time due to a physical disability in one leg,” the StateDaily notes. “He pressed on through the human current on narrow sidewalks, over gravel – sometimes diverting onto lesser-traveled side roads.”

There was also “a lot of trash” on the sidewalks, he said. But he and his wife pushed through and made it to the line into the stadium in just 40 minutes. Not bad.

“I don’t know what top speed is [on the crutches],” Smith quipped. “I was just – slow and steady wins the race.”

But, he admitted, “Walking as far as I did was painful.”

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It didn’t help that by the time they reached the stadium, the sealed bottle of water he’d brought with him was gone.

(Video Credit: Cowboy State Daily)

Despite the obstacles and troubles he faced, Smith pushed through in part because of his religious faith — one that had been shared by Kirk.

“I just felt inspired by the Lord that, ‘Hey, it’s a moment in history, and you should be a part of it – in honor of a man that deserved being honored,'” he explained. “The number one takeaway is the most important thing in life is your walk with Christ.”

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As for the funeral/memorial itself, Smith said that the speakers “closest to Charlie” were the best.

Indeed, Kirk’s wife Erika in particular blew the crowd away.

Sadly, Smith and his wife had to leave a bit early, to the point that they reportedly missed the speech by Kirk’s wife, as well as a speech by President Donald Trump.

However, even after they left so they could make it back to their car, they reportedly kept watching via their phone.

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The funeral reportedly attracted over 100,000 people. In fact, the executive producer of Kirk’s podcast, Andrew Kolvet, told Fox News that 277,000 electronic devices were detected at the memorial service.

“Kolvet … added that Kirk would have been proud to see so many people praying, holding vigils, and watching world leaders unite in Phoenix to honor him and ‘lift up the name of Jesus,'” Fox News notes.

Vivek Saxena
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