A teenage girl claims a Build-A-Bear staffer refused to print Charlie Kirk‘s name on the certificate of her teddy bear.
Evi McCormick, 16, from Tukwila, Washington, said she traveled to a Build-A-Bear workshop in Seattle with a plan to honor Kirk, who is one of her role models.
The Conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder was assassinated on September 10 while speaking to students at Utah Valley University.
After a two-day manhunt, authorities arrested a man named Tyler Robinson, 22, with capital murder in connection with Kirk’s death.
Evi shared that after building her bear, she was prompted to create a certificate and filled out the name as ‘Charlie Kirk’.
When she went to check out, she says an employee at the store told her: ‘We’re not doing this,’ Evi revealed to local NBC affiliate, KING5.
‘She just didn’t agree with it. She didn’t support it,’ Evi told the outlet.
The teen claimed that the employee then tore up the birth certificate and threw it away. Evi promptly walked out of the store and handed her friend her credit card to pay for the bear.
A Washington teen shared a photo of the teddy she made at Build-A-Bear in honor of her ‘role model’ Charlie Kirk
Conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder, Kirk, was assassinated on September 10
Kailie Lang, a friend of Evi’s, told KING5 that the encounter made the whole group uncomfortable.
‘It wasn’t political until she made it that way,’ Evi added.
Evi said that she was ‘mesmerized’ by Kirk and admitted that he ‘captivated’ her when he spoke.
Evi McCormick said she was ‘appalled’ by the employee’s behavior
In a Facebook post about the experience, Evi said that she was ‘appalled’ by the employee’s behavior and called her dad sobbing outside the store.
Evi’s friend then asked for a blank sheet of paper so she could write the name in later, but said the employee refused.
‘Safe to say, I will not be returning, and my heart genuinely hurts,’ Evi wrote.
She then shared a video of the bear, dressed in a suit and red tie, accompanied by audio of Kirk speaking.
‘Charlie Kirk is an idol to me, and to feel the hate, even onto his supporters, is so unfortunate,’ Evi wrote.
Evi’s mom, Amber, told KING5 that she called Build-A-Bear’s corporate office and was offered a $20 gift card for the experience.
She added that she received another call from a company representative a few days later, who apologized for the incident.
The teen, Evi McCormick, told local news that the staffer at the store refused to let her name the bear after Kirk, allegedly telling her: ‘We’re not doing this’
‘She said that their goal is to try to prevent this sort of situation from happening to anybody else,’ Amber added.
Daily Mail reached out to Build-A-Bear for comment on Evi’s story.
Kirk’s assassination led to a slew of firings across the country over reactions to the conservative activist’s death, including a Kansas professor who was placed on leave over comments she made online.
