Who was the speaker who thanked, among others, “proud and, finally, somewhat financially free parents,” along with “drifters and hobos who may have spent the night in the gymnasium” during the Siena Heights University graduation ceremony on Saturday, May 9?
It was none other than Dr. William James Paul Murray, aka Bill Murray, the film star and “Saturday Night Live” legend who received an honorary doctorate this weekend.
Murray surprised graduates, who weren’t told that he would be appearing, at the commencement event in Adrian, Michigan. He spoke to the audience after his sibling, Sister Nancy Murray of the Adrian Dominican Sisters, who also was given honorary doctorate recipient for her roles in education and ministry.
Both Murrays are among the final honorary degree recipients to be named by the college. Siena Heights University announced in June 2025 that it would be closing at the end of the 2025-2026 academic year. The school is a Catholic institution founded in 1919 by the Adrian Dominican Sisters.
Murray told the audience at the university’s fieldhouse that he was not prepared to give a speech, but “I feel because I am now part of your family that I will be forgiven.”
The Oscar nominee for 2003’s “Lost in Translation” joked that his hijinks at his own high school graduation led the school to tell the college he was attending that it no longer recommended him. Murray graduated from Loyola Academy, an all-boys Jesuit school in Wilmette in his home state of Illinois, and left Regis University in Denver to pursue comedy.
Mostly, Murray struck a serious note as he told the graduates, “My heart is really full for you all.”
Of the university’s closing, Murray noted, “You never point at your school again. You point at your friends again. And you point at yourself again. You don’t need a building to be who you already have become or who you will become.”
Murray shared how his family used to mark significant moments. “Our mother, who by that time was a widow left with nine children, would say, ‘Carry on and be brave,'” he said.
He concluded that if there was a rumble in the parking lot after the ceremony, “I’m fighting as a Saint. I’m on your side.”
A video of the ceremony was posted on YouTube by Siena Heights University. You can see Murray’s remarks at approximately the one hour, 45 minute mark.
Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds at jhinds@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Bill Murray gives surprise commencement speech at Michigan college
Reporting by Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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