Over six decades of service. It is very humbling to be here with you. [applause] for the record, you do outrank me. Class of 2017, you would expect me to say it is an honor to be with you, but it really is. I would like to begin by joining the president and others by thanking the family members here with us as well as the faculty and the staff and the mentors that invested so much over the years. I know your support made it possible for each of the graduates out here today to have accomplished all that they have accomplished and i know you are i. Y proud, as am several people mentioned mothers day to avoid getting in trouble at home i want to join those that have recognized mothers day. What i think i will do is just ask all the mothers here to please stand up and be recognized. [applause] i know that some of us have lost our moms along the way and they are in our thoughts and prayers today. I want to take a moment to offer personal condolences for those that have being remembered today. I know there are some empty seats at here. I want to remember them as well. As i have prepared my remarks this past week, i reflected on my own graduation from st. Michaels 40 years ago and i know that probably sounds like engine history to the class of 2017, but i remember quite a bit of detail for my graduation. That morning, i was one of two students that was commissioned in the rain core. I can still remember taking the oath of office. I remember being surrounded by friends and family and the sense of promise that was there that morning. I remember watching across the ceremony surrounded by my classmates and just like it was as i watched you this morning, it was a tremendous amount of excitement. I also remember our commencement speaker, senator Margaret Smith from the state of maine and before i graduated, she was an iconic figure. The speech she gave was recognized as one of the most significant speeches in u. S. Senate history. Unfortunately, i am not sure i heard a word she said that morning. I made that comment about a year ago in the Margaret ChaseSmith Library and the Margaret ChaseSmith Library sent me a copy of her remarks. I read the remarks and i missed a very powerful message on values and ethics. By the time she spoke on my graduation day, my mind was miles away. I had enjoyed my four years at st. Michaels and develop many important relationships in my life, but i was ready to move on. Mentally, i had made the break from my college days and i suspect there is one or two of you out there that share that sentiment. With that in mind, i challenge myself to Say Something this morning that is relevant to those of you graduating. Something you may actually remember at least until tomorrow morning. I am going to a cop is my accomplish my mission by sharing just a few thoughts accomplish my mission by sharing just a few thoughts. Maybe just be a bit more attentive than i was. I chose to talk about leadership because i believe we should expect leadership from graduates of an institution founded by the society of saint evan. A group committed to serving others. We should expect leadership from men and women who graduate from a college that emphasizes social justice. The should expect graduates from a school that consistently ranks best liberal arts colleges in the nation. I remember the words of president henry back in 1977 when they were asked why st. Michaels part of their answer was because we dont train students for followership, for jobs that may become technically obsolete. St. Michaels aims to give you sound thinking, creativity, resourcefulness, selfassurance, universal skills in every profession in any age. I think their words are as true in 2017 as they were in 1977. One of the qualities all great leaders share is moral courage. It was alluded to earlier this morning. The ability to think for yourself and the willingness to do the right thing regardless of the consequences. I didnt appreciate it at the time, but that characteristic defined my commencement speaker, Margaret Chase smith. In part to pay her back for my inattentiveness in 1977, i would like to share a little bit about her story. She was born in 1897. She was the first woman to serve in both houses of congress and only a handful of women served in the house when she joined in 1940. For over a decade, she was the only woman to serve in the senate as a result of winning a general election. She was a trailblazer with many admirable qualities, but it was the moral courage that she demonstrated in 1950 that established her as a truly extraordinary leader. In the 1950s, the nations confidence was shaken by financial trouble, russias success at developing an atomic weapon. In that context, the political opportunist senator Joseph Mccarthy took advantage of what senator smith called the hart the four horsemen. Unfairly called into question the patriotism and integrity of many good americans. He literally destroyed lives and careers with rumor and innuendo. Although many agreed with his broad sweeping accusations, very few had the courage to take on senator mccarthy. On the first of june, 1950, center it Margaret Chase smith took to the senate floor and delivered a speech she declared as a declaration conscience. For many reasons, it was a bold step for her to take. She was a very junior senator and at the time, mccarthy was very popular here in new england. As the only woman in the senate, she was under extreme scrutiny at a time when many believed that women had no place in politics. She was well aware she was risking her reputation in a political career. She looked at the evidence behind mccarthys accusations and concluded what he did was wrong and harmful to our nation. To give you some sense of what she was experiencing, there is a train that runs under the capitol building. That morning before she took to the senate floor, she found herself on the small little train that moves from one building to the other with senator mccarthy. Mccarthy had some hint of what was going to happen on the senate floor and he got right up in her face and said, senator i understand you are going to give a speech this morning. Is there anything i should know . Senator smith moved to the senate floor alone and took on Joseph Mccarthy and after her speech through for example, others began to speak out and the dark chapter of mccarthyism was eventually closed. Senator smith knew what it meant to be a leader. She knew that being a leader meant doing the right thing, even when it was hard. In her own words, the right thing is not always the popular or the easy thing. Standing for right when it is unpopular is the true test of moral current. H leridge corey courage. Graduates of st. Michaels 2017, future leaders, you will all have you wont all have a moment in your lives as consequential as senator smith, but you will have a moment when standing for right is hard. Remember the example of senator Margaret Chase smith who stood right here 40 years ago speaking to the class of 1977. Another quality i have found in great leaders is a commitment to serve something greater than yourself. A passion and a willingness to serve others. To hear the words of christ to offer inspiration the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve. As a 13yearold growing up here in vermont, he watched serving africanamericans in alabama and felt the calling. He was posted in alabama and spent his days doing what any priest would do, visiting people in their homes, caring for the sick, and offering mass. He opened up a hospital and educated children in a parish school. But he early 1960s, it earned the trust of africanamericans in selma. And when civil rights leaders came calling, he linked arms with them viewing their struggle as a natural extension to his service to the community. He offered his parish as a training place for volunteers. They spoke out against injustice and he called on christians from across the country to join the fight for civil rights. In doing so, he became a target for those resistant to change. He was hauled before a grand jury and accused of being a communist. He received menacing phone calls in the middle of the night and endured repeated threats against his life. None of that could keep him from answering his call to serve. He continued to care for the sick in their homes and in the hospital. He worked as a handyman and he used his position to call for quality. 1965 when civil rights leaders rallied, father will let open them with open arms. Werepeaceful marches beaten on the bridge, he found care at the hospital. He would get out of his hospital bed to help those who had been injured at day. As protesters reorganized, father willett worked behind the scenes and brought priests, ministers, rabbis, and layman to alabama. Conviction and turned the tide on march 26, 1955. In a procession of the 5000 americans shortly after they arrived on the steps of the capitol in alabama. Five months later, the Voting Rights act was passed, providing protection for those who marched on montgomery. As the nation celebrated the victory, father willett felt the sting of loss. His archbishop was angered by his role in the Civil Rights Movement and removed him from his parish. Demonstrating what it means to be a great leader, father willett maintained his commitment to serve others. Even through his final sermon at selma. Rather than give into bitterness and disappointment, he concluded with these words, all we do we must do with love. As a person and individual, i matter very little. Although, the Church Matters a great deal. That is what it means to have a passion for serving others. As a leader of consequence, it is never about you. Of st. Michaels class of 2017, future leaders, a few of you will be called upon to serve in a manner such as father willett, but many of you will lead in education or Public Service and i hope you remember the story of father willett. The greatest call is to serve those you lead. Those who may be still with me are probably having a hard time identifying with these examples. You may have taken a deep gulp and wondered if being a leader requires the selflessness of Margaret Chase smith. If you sit with those concerns, i do not share them. What i learned in my 40 years of service is that extraordinary leaders are actually ordinary men and women who make a commitment to excellence. Leaders are men and women who take down deep and do what is right, even when there is a voice inside that says take the easy way. I do not share your concerns because i look at the generation of st. Michaels graduates who sat where you sit this morning and have gone on to be leaders of consequence in a wide range of endeavors. Several examples i am honored to be up here on the stage with a human rights activists, brian lacey in the creative arts, senator patrick leahy, and a leading marine biologist. In the interest of time, i did not describe the challenges that currently face our nation. From a security perspective alone, i think it is fair to say the challenges we face today are as complex and difficult as any we faced since world war ii. The pace of change is unprecedented. Navigating in the days ahead will require leadership. Your generation of leadership will play an increasingly important role. Our education system, our military, the public and private sector, all need strong, valuebased leadership. As graduates of st. Michaels, i believe you are uniquely capable of providing that leadership. I will close by making a simple request regardless of where life takes you, have the moral courage to do what is right even when it is tough. Commit to being something bigger than yourself whether it is in your professional life or your personal life. Remember the ethics instilled here at st. Michaels and bring that forth with you as you go to through your life. Perhaps inspired by the story of Margaret Chase smith or father willett, be a leader of consequence. To the Saint Michaels community and class of 2017 and the families here today particularly to the faculty and the staff, it has been an extraordinary day for me to be literally back home here at st. Michaels and to have a chance to look at your faces two look at the proud faces of the parents here and to be part of such a big day in your life. I wish you all the best as you go forward to be leaders of consequence. God bless you all and is the father said, remain always faithful. Thank you so much. [applause] it is a gift to a woman who is willing to open her mind and her heart to it. It is. You are so blessed to have this. Yearugh i know your first you did not think it was such a gift. I was there for a lot of those phone calls. This is hard. They just want to the study all the time. Yes, they do. That was freshman year. Made sophomore year she had had several at tiffanys and realized what all of you have come to realize, you do this for yourself, you dont do this for anybody else. Heard aboutou have this institution is true, it is a prestigious and powerful place that will wear you out. Is something that woman thing starts to kick in. Kicking in, that little woman thing. She came here a naive girl from dallas. Those who love her are grateful to you for the women and process that you gave us back. We are grateful for that. The change a year and a half after she went from being here. She went from, daddy, this is hard. I wont be able to go on th we mark the 100th anniversary of j. F. K. s birth. Joining from us boston is the executive director of the john f. Kennedy library foundation. Good monday morning. Thank you for being with us. Guest thank you. Host want to begin with this piece in the washington post, americas forever young president earns00