Sage Hill speaker imparts life lessons

NEWPORT BEACH — Britton Caillouette took a hair-raising journey to becoming Sage Hill School’s guest speaker on Friday.

Caillouette, the son of two of Sage Hill’s founders, graduated with the school’s first class in 2003. Soon after, he lost a leg to bone cancer — but rather than discourage him, the loss inspired him to embrace life more than ever. By the time he took the podium Friday, he was in the midst of editing a surfing documentary that he recently filmed with friends in West Africa.

The Stanford University student noted that during graduation time, seniors were often asked what they planned to be in life. The true answer to that question, Caillouette said, sometimes comes after life-changing experiences.

“Winter will come when you least expect it,” he said. “But I’m here to tell you to welcome it with open arms and use these opportunities to make your life more meaningful.”

With Caillouette and many of his classmates finishing college this year, Sage Hill is still in its relative infancy. The nondenominational private school, which opened in 2000, has gained a reputation since then for both academics and charity. Students, many of them attending through financial aid, serve as mentors to local public school children and do other community projects.

On Friday, 108 students participated in commencement. The senior class, following an annual Sage Hill tradition, left a gift for future generations at the school — in this case, a series of handcrafted tiles that will be used to decorate a planter on campus.

Jacqueline Smethurst, the interim head of school, called the class of 2007 an exceptional one.

“It’s a very smart class,” she said. “They’re going to an incredible range of colleges across the country. I can’t say enough about them. They’re the best.”

Student speaker Natalie Kraft returned the compliment by asking each of her classmates to thank at least one teacher before leaving the ceremony.

“We aren’t just numbers to them,” she said. “We are real people with dreams and goals.”