Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C Headgear
Speech of Entertain
Headgear may be the most important article in the army's uniform. You wear headgear to protect yourself from the rain and hot rays of sunshine, as well as for others to admire your military status. Military designers are tempted again and again to make headgear exclusive, namely, more stylish, trendy, and fashionable.

My old patrol cap, the one I am holding in my hand, is my friend's present. It has neither double thick bill nor internal pocket, neither chinstraps nor breathtaking camouflage color by which any desert sniper would figure me out in no time. Well, how comfortable it feels - even with that strong smell of military service! What a feeling!

In the army, the patrol cap is one of the three headgear options, together with the beret and the military visor dress hat. When I tried to find secrets of a new ACU patrol cap, it occurred to me that the military value moisture-wicking boots more than headgear.

A new patrol cap is described as "an upgraded soft cap with double thick bill, no earflaps and a lower profile." Well, my old patrol cap is soft, too. No wonders, it has known so many laundries. It has no earflaps, either. What about a lower profile or a higher profile? No sweat, if I change it like this and like that . Where's the rub?

You may ask me why I argue against a new patrol cap.

Because I care for its history and I hate being cheated.

My patrol cap suits me well. It may be used under any weather conditions. The color may be dulled but a faded cap is the proof of many hours spent outdoors. I don't think a special pocket in the crown may alter anything in this valuable object of mine. Neither would two-ply panels with eyelets improve it a lot. Well, I can't call my cap a "flying tiger" but it serves me well. At least it functions as a cap, has no false pretensions, and protects safely my head. You would recognize it as a patrol cap at first sight. Such a cherished model!

Whatever you think, mine is a true patrol cap. In a new patrol cap this feeling will somewhat disappear. I bet!

The army's uniform keeps on changing. Patrol caps are still in fashion. They are stylish and match the design of a new uniform.

However, modifications are not always functionally justified. In my opinion, an old patrol cap has proved to serve its functions best. So, it is arguable whether modifications of an old patrol cap are worth the efforts and time. My patrol cap is history and comfort combined. That's true!
Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C
Baloot
Speech of Acceptance I am extremely honored to have been selected the mayor of Baloot and to accept the responsibilities that your trust has entitled me to. I am boundlessly grateful to the votes of 88% of the townsfolk who thus empowered me to make the daily life of Baloot better, and I can hardly keep in my impatience to start it. I guess I'll have to wait at least until the end of the inauguration ceremony to start.

Our town requires a lot of improvements. As mentioned in the election campaign, I will direct the attention of the town authorities to the problem of our roads, especially the roads to the new southeastern districts of the city (New Hampshire, Pemberley). I used to be at the head of the building corporation "MBuild" that specialized in multistorey housing, and I know at first-hand of the poor state of the highways and roads in the location. As a mayor I will do my best to deal with this problem. According to the four-step plan, in three years the south-easterners will have newly-repaired and asphalted roads at their disposal. My second concern will be ensuring the simplification of the credit issue to the young families for house-building. Finally, I also plan to minimize and eradicate red tape in the activities of private entrepreneurs and small companies.

Thank you again for your trust in me and my team. Before the symbolical act of handing over the keys from Baloot to me I thought much about the long way we have overcome to be here today. For four years I represented the interests of the Pemberley community at the Baloot town council, until I understood that the difficulties were to be overcome from the top, and only the mayor could attempt to change the situation radically. I am grateful to my supporters for their belief in me that empowered me to be here today and accept the keys from Baloot some ten minutes ago.

Let me assure you that in my activities I will be guarded by no other principles than those of the Bible and the Constitution. As far as I can remember in Ancient China the candidates to the post in the town administration were to pass an examination in aesthetics and display their love and understanding of art. Only then could they become high-officials. Well, times have changed, but the humanity has hardly been altered - neither have the universal principles of humanism and morality. In my work as a mayor I pledge to adhere to the Bible and the Constitution, to implement and develop the ideal of freedom to ensure adequate life for townspeople irrespective of their economic, political or social status.

I am proud of your trust, Baloot, and I will justify it to the best of my competence and knowledge. Thank you.

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C Treands
Speech of Welcome

A very good evening to all of you and a warm welcome as we celebrate the fifth anniversary of Trends, our lifestyle magazine.

It is an exceptional night today. Five years ago Gary and I started this magazine in the garage of a friend's house, because frankly that was all we could afford as an office. It is thanks to all the special people who joined us here today that we are able to celebrate five years of not just running this magazine but being successful at it. To all those people who could not join us here today, we miss you.

Tonight though, is about enjoying ourselves. Not looking at tomorrow but celebrating the present so go ahead and let your hair down. Have a magical night! You have all worked so hard for it. Surround yourselves with the happiness you deserve and thank you for making this possible.

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C Tamilflu
Imformative Speech Did you know that during the first six months of 2004, approximately 200 million birds died or were destroyed in attempt to stop the pandemic of avian influenza (5)? Did you hear that United Nations coordinator, Dr David Nabarro, estimated the number of possible human casualties as 5-150 million people? Are you aware that since its discovery in the 1990-ies the avian flu has been contracted by more than 100 people, and one half of them died (6)?

Such figure may appear too abstract for us, as well as the avian flu itself raging somewhere on the other side of the world. In our corner of the world everything is fine, most of us love chicken meat, and are not going to deny ourselves a Mac Chicken on week-ends. But the eye-opener for us all is the fact that the avian flu epidemic is much closer to America than it seems. If it strikes, no one listening to this speech will be immune, and "there won't be Tamiflu or hospital beds for everybody", the officials say (6). So my thesis is that the only way of prevention of an avian flu epidemic in the USA is inoculation.

The vaccine was synthesized by the National Institutes of Health, and it creates a protective immunity in the human organism in two rounds of inoculation (6). The truth is that it won't cure an infected individual, but it will prevent a disease. At the moment there is no treatment for the human modification of the avian flu. The medication called "Tamilflu", elaborated by Roche Pharmaceutical in Switzerland, can only "slow the ability of the virus to overwhelm your body and make lots of copies of itself and that buys you time to develop appropriate immunity and kill it off", if taken in the first 36 hours (6). All in all, isn't it more appropriate to inoculate yourself against a lethal disease and minimize the chance of its contraction than resorting to Tamilflu to slow down the infection? The US government has already purchased some six million doses of vaccination, so if you apply for vaccination at his very moment, you are most likely to be inoculated.

I highly advise that you take care of yourself right now. The global matters are actually in the hands of every individual. If everyone will be immune to the disease, the pandemic won't break in. You just need to be inoculated in order to prevent an infection that can kill 150 million people. Your future and the future of the United States depend on your choice. Choose life before it is too late. Choose vaccination.

Thank you.

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C Graduation
Persuasive Speech Dear students, where are you going to be in five years? What will you be doing from 9 till 6 every day? In what sphere will you work? In other words, what are your career objectives? Some of you must be thinking that the third year of studies is yet too early to ask such questions. Let me assure you that it is high time to decide upon this issue.

In fact, as my 7 year-long experience as HR-manager shows, there are only two alternatives. Either you think about your career beforehand - now! - or you graduate in two years with an empty track record, and cling to the very first job available with the highest salary. "Not bad at all", some of you might think. Still, believe me that you will soon get bored, for money is not the sense of life. When you hate what you do every day for eight hours, when you go to work only to receive your monthly salary - your life is not complete to say the least. I like the quotation by Elizabeth Kubler Ross who said that "people are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within" (3). The source of this inner light is love for everything that surrounds you - your family in the first place, but also your work! It should give you delight, ensure your professional and personal growth and provide you with a sense of achievement and importance of what you do. Trust my experience: such people rarely get bored with their work in the course of years and are much happier than disillusioned money-earners.

The most difficult thing here is to find the right kind of job. Every person is unique and is best suited to a particular sphere or position. You will never know which exactly is perfect for you until you try. In two years you will graduate the Linguistic department. Where will you go when the diploma is in your pocket? The earlier you start searching, the sooner you will know the answer. Some of you will pursue the direct specialization and work as translators, interpreters or language teachers. Others will plunge into a neighboring sphere and will carve out a career in the tourist business, management etc. Whatever sphere you choose, it should be your cup of tea, not just means to earn your living or beguile eight hours of your day. I call upon you to assume an active attitude to you career, and investigate the possible fields of interest right now, while you still have time to be mistaken and opportunity to work part-time. Two years is the term long enough to understand what you actually expect from your job and find at least the direction of your path. You will know the practical advantages of a definite job - and its drawbacks as well. The more you do now, the less confusion you'll feel when the university door is flung open and you are welcome to go - but where? Even small working experience will help you to answer this question and find your true self by becoming a skilled professional.

According to my deepest conviction, happy person is the person who always brings his own sunshine, wherever he goes and whatever the weather (3). Hope to see these sparks in you in two years by the time of your graduation. Thank you.
Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C
Mrs. Lee Memorial Service Mrs. Lee is no longer with us. Our grief is unbearable because we have been used to having her with us - easy to contact, always hospitable and willing to give a helping hand.

On this sad day we all feel how important her presence was to us. We cannot physically feel the warmth of her attitude, her strength, her charm, her friendliness anymore. But here, she is still with us. And will ever be - in our memories, in our hopes, in our doings here, on earth.

She was a good wife, a devoted mother of two children, and a wonderful grandmother of three grandchildren. She was our friend, our devoted friend, who always cared for us, who always supported us, and with whom we used to share our happiness and anxiety.

It was Mary who introduced the world of literature to me. I could spend hours gluing to a TV screen. I thought it was the only escape from loneliness. But when I made close friends with Mary, I think I was eleven at that time, my life had drastically changed. Well, she introduced a new world to me - the world that was full of love, sympathy, and goodness. Together with Mary, I became a regular church goer. Together with her, I volunteered to help the elderly people in our neighborhood. Together with her, I went to parties. Due to her, I got to know that it was time for hard work and for pleasure. She was a disciplined person, hardworking, brilliant at school. She memorized poetry, Robert Frost being her favorite, and did wonders interpreting it. She was a real born leader, admired by all at school.

Although Mary had been seriously ill during the last months of her life, she remained the same cheerful person as ever. She knew that she would not live long. But she never showed it. On the contrary, she helped us to prepare for this inevitable separation. In her presence we had to as strong as she was inwardly. At her bedside, she always had a book to read. She was a bookworm and could read several books simultaneously. When I visited her during her illness, we discussed literature, argued about literary trends, and shared opinions. She made me forget how gravely she was ill. She was a woman of remarkable intellectual powers. We remember her book printed ten years ago. She was a college professor respected and admired by her students. She knew how to achieve harmony in her life. A modest person, she was thoughtful and shrewd in her views. We will be missing her, all of us, in a different way. But there are so many things about her to remember that I believe - she will be present in our hearts, she will lead us to new achievements, she will protect us, seeing all of us from heaven, from the dwelling where God has a rest. She was a blessed person. Sleep quietly. You have deserved your salvation and redemption.

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C Good Bye
Speech of Farewell I would like to thank each and every one of you for gathering here this evening. It was 20 years ago since I was hired to work at XYZ corporation. I was nervous at first, but there was just this huge abundance of fine people who helped me to get my groundings. This corporation could thrive on it's friendliness alone. That friendliness has rubbed off me since then.

But sadly, I must say that all things must come to an end. After 20 years of working for this wonderful corporation I need to retire. My health is not what it used to be and my family at home would like to see more of me. Don't get me wrong, there is certainly a big family at this corporation, and I will certainly miss that too.

Let me recount some of my favorite memories over the years. Do each of you recall at the 97 Christmas party when Larry showed up in a Santa suit and gave everyone surprise gifts? Or when the boss gave everyone the day off just because he was in a good mood? Wow, there's just too many good memories that I will leave behind.

On a serious note, me leaving the company will leave the human resources department minus one person. This would normally have serious consequences on the productivity of the company, but I have taken the liberty of helping to find somebody as my replacement.

So now that I've taken care of everything for my departure, I would like to assure eveyrone that while departures are sad, I am not sad. I am happy because while I cannot take you all with me, I can keep the memories with me always, and so can you.

Thank you very much.

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C My Words Speech of Introduction

Needless to say, I am a tiger conservationist and after a lifetime of chasing money, success and to an extent fame, I am devoting my life to chasing poachers.

No, I did not take a page out of the life of characters in best selling books, though the parallels drawn are inevitable. I did this because this is what my life's aim was when I was, let us say, younger and naive. It took me 10 years to realize that my naivety had more individuality in it than my success did. After behaving like a groupie of Ansel Adams' for years, I was more than content being just another face in the crowd. By the way, for those of you who are too young (or not worldly wise) to have heard of Adams, he was an environmentalist and photographer, who took brilliant photographs of the Yosemite National Park in America.

You may wonder why, while addressing a batch of graduates from one of the most prestigious journalism colleges in the world, I am reminiscing about my own life. Well, introducing myself, with all my faults and mistakes, is the one way I have of explaining to you how important it is to pursue your dreams. Do not let the big bad world outside (and it is big and bad), affect that idealism you have in your heart. Follow your dreams, however stupid and impractical, someone else tells you, they are. For a few weeks after you start your jobs, you will remember my words and fight the corruption of your soul but then you will give in. It is inevitable. But try and fight it as long as you can. Channel Dylan Thomas and remember, "Do Not Go Softly Into That Good Night."

Rachel C. Ancheta
BS IT 2C My Mother
Speech of Tribute

My Mother's name marked her out as the goddess of the rainbow, a messenger for the ancient Olympian gods and carrier of faith, hope and wisdom. She was Iris. And although the given meaning of her name is rich in imagery and history that wasn't what swayed her parent's to call her that. Instead it was something more immediate.
After her birth my grandmother saw a bed of iris out the bedroom window. She was named for the regal beauty of their dark purple flowers. Iris, the last of a family of five children, arrived during the Depression Years. At two years old her father died and her family were thrust into hard times. Her brothers and sisters were sent out to work as soon as they were old enough. There was no government assistance for widows in those days. On eve of World War Two she left school to work too. She was thirteen years old and as she said, knew nothing about anything.
Soon being a shop girl behind the Woolworth's counter was no longer enough. She wanted to understand. She wanted to do things, be someone who knew stuff and went places. That hunger drove her to night school and a secretarial course. She even took speech lessons to learn as she said with a smile, 'to talk proper'. Nothing, not even God, was exempt from her desire to break free of limitations imposed by circumstance. Her staunch Catholic upbringing was questioned. The family fall-out from her decision to abandon it was legendary. My Great-Grandmother locked her in her room for several days. Prayers were said and priests brought to the door. However threats of hell-fire and eternal damnation were powerless against her will to know for herself. Finally her family relented, the door was opened and she was reluctantly set free.
By the time WW2 ended Iris had emerged as a competent personal secretary who enjoyed life.
In 1947 she met my father. It was 'love at first sight' and they married six weeks later.
Let's fast forward eighteen years now. Iris and Graham had five children. I am the eldest and the youngest was two when, in a curious repetition of family history, my father died. This time, in this generation, there was a widow's benefit and although meagre, it kept us going and my Mother was very grateful. Events in times of great shock are tattooed into memories and their images remain despite the wear of years. From those chaotic early days of struggling to find a sense of place without my father, to effectively parent five children on her own, to balance growing financial demands against a small fixed income and more, flow a stream of images, each portraying aspects of Iris I respect and revere.

Rachel C. Ancheta

BS IT 2C

Happy Birthday Speech of Courtesy

Hello everybody, let me grab a handful of minutes of your attention and congratulate our "newly-born", Gowie, on her 25th birthday, and wish her a couple of things. Well, to be frank, I am very glad to be here today and to see her celebrate her birthday surrounded by friends and close people.

I have known Gowie since our freshman times in Glasgow University and it is a pleasure for me to note that she hasn't changed a bit in five years, and is still a cheerful energizer of all our student (now graduate) parties and the soul of the company - I always wondered how she contrived to find time for everything, and always came with her home assignment ready even after our student carousals late into the night. Besides the evident advantage of having her homework always done, Gowie has always been - and is - a good mixer ready to listen to a problem and offer some advice. Not less outstanding were her academic merits, as this June she graduated with honors, and now works for one of the renowned PR-agencies.

But first and foremost, Gowie is an amazing person, and on her birthday I'd like to wish her simple human happiness. I wish her harmony that comes when all the components of life are balanced: when daily work brings delight and in the evening you hurry back home to be with your family. I wish Gowie inner comfort when you know that somewhere near, at the distance of a phone call, there are old friends who care about you and if you feel blue, they will always come to your place with beer and chips to disperse your problems with a hearty laugh and recollections of turbulent student days. I wish her a year full of pleasant little trifles and joys that give one strength to make great achievements and reach one's goals.

May Gowie's most cherished dreams come true, as we stand up and raise our glasses for her birthday and happiness.