Sometimes, we are truly inspired by the good in other people. And you don’t have to be an adult to have a profound impact . There are lots of kids out there doing incredible things every day that deserve a few minutes in the spotlight . One such 14-year-old in St. Louis was determined to attend his eighth-grade graduation ceremony. Xavier Jones worked hard in middle school and wanted to walk across that stage.
Xavier got to his graduation, but not how most kids do. He wasn’t in a car, bus, or subway train. Xavier walked more than 6 miles to the ceremony. This kid has determination and grit that, quite frankly, plenty of adults in this world are missing. He is an inspiration — reading his story might even bring a tear or two to your eyes. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
The walk took him more than two hours.
Xavier didn’t intend to walk to the graduation ceremony , but he didn’t have much choice.
“I was going to tell an adult but my grandpa’s car was down. So I was just going to walk there,” he told KMOV.
The student at Yeatman Middle School did what many kids do today. He consulted his good friend, Google. “I looked up Harris Stowe University on Google Maps and then I saw the walking distance and then I said I could probably make it,” he told the outlet.
He grabbed a couple of buddies, and off they went.
Xavier didn’t tell his grandpa or anyone at school that he would walk to the ceremony. Instead, he grabbed his brother and a friend, and together the trio walked 6 miles to Harris-Stowe State University in midtown St. Louis.
The city is hot this time of year, but he said that grabbing a drink of water along the way kept the kids motivated and moving. “I wanted to walk across the stage,” the determined graduate said.
Xavier’s mentor, Darren Seals , told KSDK that the walk was challenging for his young friend.
“The shoes that he walked in had holes in the bottom, holes in the top,” Seals said. “Two-and-a-half-hours walk. A long road, I wouldn’t have walked it.”
Seals works with youth at the Sankofa Community Center, where he tries to encourage kids to make a difference. “Change the norm, that’s what I tell the kids. Change the norm. No matter if you live a nightmare, never give up,” he told KSDK.
When the university caught wind of Xavier’s incredible accomplishment, they congratulated him in a big way.
He may have walked to his eighth-grade graduation, but Harris-Stowe State University offered to give him a lift in the future. University President Dr. Latonia Collins Smith presented Xavier with a full ride presidential scholarship to the university, covering his tuition, books, and fees. We told you, tears, right?
“Many of our students come with a story and many of our students come with environmental barriers they have overcome or that they are currently overcoming,” Collins Smith told KMOV.
She remarked that Xavier is someone special, and he has a bright future ahead. “I just led with my heart and I followed my heart and my heart said this is a kid that needs a scholarship,” she said.
Xavier knows what he wants and he is determined to get it.
Xavier is dedicated to doing big things with his life. He plans to attend college, and after completing his education, he wants to become a NASCAR driver. The school gave him a personal campus tour on Wednesday, and he is pumped about attending in a few years.
“It means that I’m going to do something great and that I finally made it out of the eighth grade,” he said “There’s a lot of fun stuff you can do at this campus.”
Xavier is a remarkable kid from whom we could all learn a thing or two. Collins Smith agrees. “At the end of the rainbow, there’s a pot of gold. I learned a lot from Xavier that day,” Collins Smith told KMOV. “Even on your worst day, keep pressing forward.”
People love Xavier.
“This young man is amazing!” one commenter wrote. “This mattered so much to him that nothing could stop him. May he continue to follow his dreams with this same determination and drive. God bless you young man. You are quite special. And so are your brother and friend! I love this story.”
“This kid will literally go somewhere in life!” another person wrote. “Determined and driven. Not meaning to play on words but he is someone to be proud of.”
Someone else wrote: “Young Man you are an inspiration for all who heard your story. Congratulations on your graduation and continued determination in the coming years, I know we will hear amazing things about you in the future.”
We agree, Xavier. You are an incredible young man who is obviously working his tail off to make a wonderful life for himself. We know you will do great things. Just be safe when you’re driving that race car and wear a helmet. Sorry, we can’t help it. We’re moms!
Graduation season is in full swing, and that means we’ll be full of tears, happiness, celebration, and family time. No matter when you graduated, you probably received some words of wisdom from relatives or past graduates. But the real wisdom comes from the graduation speeches.
If you’ve ever heard a powerful commencement speech, there were probably parts of it that you will remember — and take inspiration from — for years. This is especially true if you had a memorable guest speaker — like one of these celebrities. A long list of stars, including Jennifer Garner , Steve Carell, and Matthew McConaughey , have been invited to colleges and universities across the country to spice up — let’s be honest — what can sometimes be long and tedious ceremonies.
Celebrities are known for giving epic speeches because they are used to the attention, fanfare, and entertaining people. What’s more, all that experience learning lines and delivering dialogue on-set means they are oratory pros — they’re not likely to stumble over their words or flub their speech.
And considering their colorful careers — they step into all sorts of interesting roles, travel around the world, and meet countless fascinating people — they have a lot of life experience and wisdom to impart to the next generation as they embark on their adult lives. We can see why the colleges have them on speed dial!
Here are some of the best celebrity speeches of the bunch — and thanks to video recordings, we can relive them anytime we need a quick pick-me-up!
Steve Carell
Funnyman Steve Carell had the entire crowd rolling with laughter at Princeton University’s 2012 commencement. To conclude his hilarious speech , he left the graduates with one final thought: “Every once in a while, put something positive into the world. Do something kind, make somebody laugh, and do not take yourself too seriously.”
Even though the grads and their families were getting rained on, they appeared to love every minute of it.
Stephen Colbert
Some universities are lucky enough to have a celebrity as an alum — this was the case when Stephen Colbert spoke at Northwestern University in 2011 on the 25th anniversary anniversary of his graduation from the school.
He started out warning the graduates, who were about to head out into the big, wide world, “I’m counting on you to not make me look like an idiot — so be great, no pressure!” He also told the story of how he never received his diploma on his actual graduation day because of an incomplete class, which he found out on the morning of the ceremony!
Matthew McConaughey
Because of the health crisis, in-person graduations were canceled across the US in 2020. So Good Morning America decided to host its own universal commencement, recruiting Matthew McConaughey to address graduates everywhere.
To the class of 2020, he urged, “Make it count and above all, just keep living,” in his short but enthusiastic speech.
Ashton Kutcher
The University of Iowa Honors Program shared its commencement talk via a virtual ceremony in 2020. Ashton Kutcher — who was born and raised in Iowa — was the chosen speaker , and he revealed what his original career goal was before Hollywood came calling. (He wanted to be a geneticist.)
As for his advice, he encouraged the Iowa graduates to take the road less traveled and stay open to new possibilities. “Life will throw you some crazy, crazy curveballs. It will send you opportunities and in directions you couldn’t even imagine. And if you have the plan locked in, you might just miss the opportunity.”
Will Ferrell
Comedian Will Ferrell delivered the 2017 commencement speech at the University of Southern California after receiving an honorary degree . He told the story of how he grew up learning to accept his silliness and weirdness, and he assured the graduates that it was fine if they “didn’t have it all figured out.”
He told the crowd, “Enjoy the process of your search without succumbing to the pressure of the result, trust your gut, keep throwing darts at the dart board, don’t listen to the critics, and you will figure it out.” And if those wise words weren’t enough, he ended his speech by breaking out into song, doing a rendition of “I Will Always Love You.”
Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman shared some of his personal experiences as a student at Howard University while delivering the school’s 2018 commencement speech. “You would rather find purpose than a job or a career. Purpose crosses disciplines, purpose is an essential element of you. It is the reason you are on the planet at this particular time. Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill,” he told those gathered.
And though the Black Panther star sadly died in August 2020 , his legacy will live on at Howard because the university announced in May 2021 that it was naming its College of Fine Arts after him .
Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep’s 2010 address at Columbia University’s Barnard College — one of the most watched graduation speeches on YouTube — was full of comparisons between her amazing acting career and how it is so similar to real life.
She told the women graduates, “Women are better at acting than men. Why? Because we have to be. Pretending is not just play, pretending is imagined possibility. Pretending or acting is a very valuable life skill, and we all do it all the time.”
Amy Poehler
Amy had the chance to speak at the oldest university in America, Harvard, in 2011. She gave advice as a Bostonian, a New Yorker, and an actor.
Drawing from her own career experiences — as a TV and movie comedian, she’s frequently teamed up with friend Tina Fey — she advised: “You can’t do it alone. As you navigate the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own.”
Michelle Obama
Former first lady Michelle Obama gave an inspiring speech at Virginia Tech in 2012. As such a smart and successful woman, it’s no surprise that her address was full of wise moments for a school that only a few years before had endured an unspeakable tragedy. She noted, “In the end, people can only define you if you let them. In the end, it’s up to each of us to define ourselves.”
It’s such great advice that we can all use today.
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey has been asked to speak at more than a dozen different universities — are we surprised? — but her latest opportunity was a full-circle moment for her. She spoke at Colorado College in 2019, the very year when the last girl from her school in Africa graduated and received her diploma. This speech is epic because of Oprah’s incredible storytelling talents.
She spoke about how you never know where life is going to take you — so it’s important to hold tight to your dreams. “Your purpose is to do what you have to do until you can do what you want to do. Here’s the truth: For years I had a job and did a lot of things I did not want to do. I got demoted and discovered my life’s calling,” she shared.
John Krasinski
In 2019, John Krasinski opened his speech at his alma mater of Brown University by asking, “Why am I up here?” (Though he must have loved the experience in the end because he threw his own virtual commencement in 2020.)
He left the Brown crowd with a long list of life advice: “Find more of your people, lean all the way in, take chances, fail big and take chances again, listen to music, remember to believe in something, and fall in love as many times as it takes. Before you do something special, just do something.”
Mindy Kaling
It is an honor for anyone to be asked to speak, and this celeb has been asked more than once. Mindy Kaling most recently spoke at Dartmouth, her alma mater, in 2018.
She was thrilled to be back at her school and told the graduates, “Don’t be scared if you don’t do things in the right order, or if you don’t do certain things at all.” She said she wouldn’t change the fact that her own life took an unexpected path — because it turned out exactly the way it was supposed to.
Barack Obama
Former president Barack Obama added Howard to his long list of commencement speeches in 2016 after earning an honorary degree from the university. He encouraged the class of grads to be good listeners.
“Change requires more than just speaking out — it requires listening as well. In particular, it requires listening to those with whom you disagree — and be prepared to compromise,” he said. These are lessons he certainly has practiced in his own career.
Jennifer Garner
At Denison University’s 2019 graduation, 1994 alum Jennifer Garner spoke about how college afforded her family more opportunities in life — something she’s never taken for granted.
She urged the graduates, “Insist on optimism, dig in, fight for what makes you optimistic about the world. Find it, insist on it, dig into it, go after it.” After all, the sky’s the limit.
Shonda Rhimes
TV queen Shonda Rhimes noted that it was rare for alums to speak at Dartmouth when she made her commencement speech in 2014. She encouraged graduates to pursue activism to not only make themselves better but to bring about change in the world around them.
She also shared some wisdom that us parents can appreciate: “As you try to figure out the impossible task of juggling work and family, for once I’m going to answer that question with 100% honesty. The answer is this, I don’t. Whenever you see me somewhere succeeding in one area of my life, that almost certainly means I am failing in another area of my life. And yet, I want my daughters to see me succeeding. And I am a better mother for it.”
