At Whittier College’s Graduation 2026, Jim Abbott’s ‘improbable story’ shines anew (original) (raw)

Clouded in grey skies overhead, Whittier College’s 2026 commencement on Friday, May 8, held in an amphitheater of friends and family surrounding a pit of prospective graduates and faculty, was anything but gloomy.

The event was full of brightness, resilience and hope, as keynote speaker Jim Abbott told the Class of 2026 about “improbable stories” like his own: a former Major League Baseball pitcher and Olympic gold medalist born without a right hand, who defied expectations on his way to the big leagues and beyond.

“A lot will be expected, and it’s important to maximize those opportunities in the talent at your disposal,” Abbott said, recalling a moment when his daughter asked him about his hand. “That’s what my little hand has taught me. … If you can find your own way do things in ways that nobody’s ever done them, nothing can stop you.”

With its 123rd graduation ceremony and 178 graduates, President Kristine E. Dillon said Abbott was chosen as the class’s keynote speaker to “share his powerful message of hope and determination with our graduates as they prepare to take their next steps.”

1 of 20

Ella Calder and other graduates moved over their tassels and applauded during Whittier College’s 123rd commencement ceremony at the Harris Amphitheater in Whittier on Friday May 8, 2026. (Photo by Keith Durflinger, Contributing Photographer)

Expand

Whittier College’s total enrollment is about 800 students.

Garrett Dykier, the sole biochemistry major for the class and a 4-year student athlete on the swim team, was one of two students to give a speech.

“It is often said that all good things must come to an end, and as sentimental as that declaration can be, I seek to challenge it,” Dykier said, echoing Abbott.

During his time at Whittier College, Dykier’s research focused on plant-derived cleaning agents such as sustainable alternatives to conventional products. Dykier was also awarded the Presidential Athlete Scholar Award last week, for his achievement in athletics.

“Who we surround ourselves with, the goals that we aspire to, the accomplishments that we attain,” Dykier continued. “We have knowledge that so many could only dream of, and it is our duty and our privilege to use this knowledge to make our world a better place.”

After a gap year, Dykier plans on pursuing a medical degree and becoming a physician.

Student speaker Samantha Martinez’s great aunts, Teddy Torres and Rita Torres, said Martinez’s speech was “inspirational for her class.”

“Being a Poet means belonging to something bigger than ourselves,” Martinez said, referring to Whittier College’s mascot. “It means knowing that we were never alone in our struggles or our successes […] when we reach milestones we once only dreamed of, as we leave Whittier, we do not leave that community behind.

Martinez is pursuing her goal of becoming a high school English teacher.

Elizabeth Cruz, graduate Alissa Gallegos-Garcia’s mother, said she told her daughter, “ ‘Tag, you’re it,’ because I want you to go in and I want you to be the next generation that really brings this generation together, not separates them.”

Gallegos-Garcia and her mother both pursued education, with Gallegos-Garcia teaching transitional kindergarten.

Following instruction for graduates to switch their tassels from right to left, Whittier College President Kristine E. Dillon heralded the class that they entered Whittier College in 2022, with the world learning to live with COVID-19 as a disease, rather than a catastrophe.

Learning to live with what the world throws at us: It was a message that Abbott personified.

Abbott, who first gained national limelight at the University of Michigan, where he was a highly decorated athlete in his era, would ultimately march forward to help lead Team USA baseball to gold at the 1988 Olympic Games.

He would ultimately pitch for the Angels, the New York Yankees, the Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers, throwing a no-hitter for the Yankees in 1993. He’s a speaker now, taking his story of resilience to the world.

He threw nothing but strikes in Whittier on Friday.

“As Jim Abbott has encouraged, make sure that that the creativity that you’ve shown here is something you use as you connect with your next experiences and continue to learn and grow,” Dillon told the graduates. “The future is yours to shape.”