DEERFIELD — Deerfield Academy’s 207 graduates were urged to be who they are, fearlessly, by a commencement speaker who seized the opportunity of a lifetime.

When he was a boy, Henry R. Kravis, co-founder and co-executive chairman of a leading global investment firm, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., attended middle school down the road from Deerfield Academy at Eaglebrook School. On Sunday, he gave a commencement speech to Deerfield Academy’s 2025 graduates, with his grandson, Theodore Kravis Schulhof, as part of the graduating class.

Kravis roused the graduates to embark on their next step with three key virtues: courage, curiosity and independence.

“We tend to think of courage in terms of danger or challenges, but courage is really about doing what’s right,” Kravis said. “The courage to stand up for your beliefs, even when they’re unpopular. The courage to defend ideas that matter to you. The courage to explore the unknown and the courage to make difficult and personal decisions.”

Kravis shared a story of when he was a summer intern in 1967 working at the Madison Fund in New York. He was tasked to fly to Los Angeles by himself to meet with Roy Disney, the brother of Walt Disney. Kravis studied numerous financial statements to prepare for the meeting, which was planned to last one hour.

“Quite frankly I was nervous, intimidated and frighteningly scared,” Kravis said about the meeting. “But fear and complaining were not an option because I soon realized what a great opportunity I had been given.”

Kravis’ laborious preparation paid off. Halfway through the meeting, Roy Disney invited Kravis to shadow him for the rest of the day and join him for his next meetings.

Kravis said he shared that story because, “It shows that you get as much out of anything as you put in. It’s not a question of a glass half full or half empty. Be grateful that you have a glass and make sure that you have the courage and the motivation to fill it to the brim.”

Head of School John Austin gave welcoming remarks to the audience.

“As I look out at you … I see joy and challenge, resilience in the face of setback, openness and excitement for new adventure,” Austin said. “I see all the qualities of spirit and character and brilliance that have made this year such a great one, this community such a strong one, and your class such a decisive and defining one.”

Senior addresses were given by graduates Kabir Sheth and Chloe Xue, who spoke about their love for Deerfield Academy and reminisced on fond memories they made with friends.

“Deerfield is special because it embodies a beautiful blend of both structure and spontaneity,” Sheth said. “The Class of 2025, seek out and foster this blend in your future endeavors — it’ll make a huge difference. Like any institution, like anything at all, Deerfield is imperfect but it is beautiful, it is real, it is ours.”

Franklin County graduates

Julian Abreu, Deerfield; Penley Day, Greenfield; Kiefer Ebling, South Deerfield; Evan Galli, Deerfield; Rowan Howes, Whately; Daphne Huang, Deerfield; MacGregor Hynds, Deerfield; Allison Kostiuk, Deerfield; Gunnar Moore, Conway; Benjamin Sackrey, Sunderland; Ari Santos, Greenfield; Gracie Spencer, Deerfield; Thomas Unkles, Sunderland.

Hampshire County graduates

Elannah Brennan, Amherst; Ava Carvel, Amherst; Sasha Diamond, Amherst; Casey Kittredge, Amherst; Luka Kokosadze, Northampton; Yoonsa Lee, Amherst; Zavier Salomon-Fernandez, Amherst; Cori Scagel, Hatfield; Jonathan Scagel, Hatfield; Jacob Sullivan, Northampton; Elena Tskhvitaria, Northampton.

Hampden County graduates

Thomas McMahon, Longmeadow; Connor Niemiec, Westfield; Janet Ogbeiwi, Springfield; Mary O’Shea, Longmeadow; Loulla Rousou, Longmeadow; Edward Woytowicz, Longmeadow.