UVU vigil will have 'heavy' security presence as community mourns Charlie Kirk's murder

OREM — Utah Valley University is preparing to hold a vigil on campus after the murder of Charlie Kirk last week, and there will be a significant security presence at the event.

The "Vigil for Unity" is open to the public and will begin at 4 p.m. Friday at the UCCU Center. Doors will open at 2:30 p.m.

Ahead of the event, the UVU campus will close at 1 p.m. and buildings will be locked. Police plan to sweep the area in what will be a "coordinated, multijurisdictional law enforcement effort," according to UVU Associate Vice President Ellen Treanor.

"We are grateful for the full support of (the) Orem Police Department's special operations units. Special measures include a no-bag policy, metal detectors and controlled entry points at the arena," Treanor said in a statement. "We ask for patience and cooperation with these procedures, as they are in place to provide a safe and respectful environment for all attendees."

The vigil comes after conservative activist and Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk was shot and killed last week while speaking on campus. It also comes after a man in Summit County threatened violence against UVU and was arrested this week, according to police.

Treanor said there would be a "heavy security force" inside and outside the UCCU Center during the vigil, but specific operational details were not shared.

On its website, the university encouraged everyone to attend the vigil "in the spirit of peace, reflection, and mutual support."

Nathan Holladay, a recent high school graduate who visited UVU's campus Thursday evening to see a makeshift memorial for Kirk, praised the purpose of the vigil.

"We need to be able to come together, so hopefully that sense of unity will be there," said Holladay. "By trying to just foster the unity, we continue to foster the ideals that our country was formed under which is that we have the right of free speech, that's No.1, and we're able to go through a discourse and communicate our problems instead of resorting to violence."

A memorial service for Kirk is scheduled to take place Sunday in Arizona.

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