Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis give surprise visit to Oskaloosa High

OSKALOOSA — The 700 seats in the auditorium were filled Thursday with Oskaloosa High School students who thought they were attending a routine assembly.

That was before movie and television star Ashton Kutcher, accompanied by his wife, actress Mila Kunis, strode onstage and greeted the crowd. Cue the screams and applause.

'What's up, Oskaloosa?' Kutcher said. 'First and foremost, I want to say thank you. You guys got after it and raised a bunch of money and got a bunch of volunteers for the Native Fund, which is unbelievable.'

The Native Fund, this year's Iowa State Student Council project, was founded by Kutcher and former Iowa Hawkeye and pro football star Dallas Clark, both Iowa natives.

The Oskaloosa High students raised $4,000 for the fund, signing up 700 pledges. They won the contest, with the reward being a visit from Kutcher and Clark, although Clark was unable to attend.

Kutcher told the students the Native Fund grew out of a discussion he and Clark had about their desire to do something for Iowa.

'We decided to set up this fund for disaster relief, so if anything happens, whether it's a flood or a tornado, we've got some money reserved to help people out,' Kutcher said. 'And you guys are now part of our Native Fund team, and I can't thank you enough for that.'

Kutcher, who grew up in Cedar Rapids and the Amana village of Homestead, spoke to the students about opportunities in life.

'When I was in high school, I stood on a stage a lot smaller than this and did a whole bunch of plays,' he said. 'I was in the show choir and the choir, and I always had this thing in the back of my head that said 'You know, you're in Iowa, what are going to do to do that or make a career out of it?' Because where are you going to go if you're a professional actor in Iowa and actually make money? But I had this dream.'

Kutcher, now 39 and the father of two, said he took an opportunity to go to New York, and he took a chance to be an actor.

'All along the way, I kept sort of pushing for that dream and believing in the back of my mind that it could possibly happen,' he said. 'But there was a little doubt that always sat there that was like 'Well, I'm just a kid from Iowa. Like, how am I going to that?' And I just kept pushing and pushing and working and working and believing and believing, and eventually things started to happen.'

The star of dozens of films and iconic TV shows like 'That '70s Show,' MTV's 'Punk'd' and 'Two and a Half Men' told the students there is no such thing as a 'crazy dream' they can't achieve.

Kutcher challenged the students to remember they can build the world they want to live in.

Mark Zuckerberg, the people at Apple and Amazon, he said, are no smarter than anyone at Oskaloosa High School.

'Yeah, they're bright, and, yeah, they're smart, but they know a couple things,' he said. 'They know never let go of the dream, and hard work can get you there.

'The key to the whole thing is being kind to the other people around you,' he added. 'If there's a problem that you face, a problem you want to solve, you might not be able to do it yourself. But as long as you're kind to the people around you in the world, those smart people will come to you to solve those problems.'

Character award

Kutcher will be in West Des Moines tonight to receive the Robert D. Ray Pillar of Character Award for 2017. The award, named for the former Iowa governor, recognizes Kutcher for demonstrating 'good character as a role model.'