How to Quote Famous Father's Day Speeches

Father's Day has been celebrated in this country on an informal basis since 1908 (it was made into an official holiday in 1972). During that time, there have been scores of speeches given to commemorate the day we all come together to honor the nation's fathers. Many politicians, ministers and celebrities have publicly expressed their thoughts about Father's Day at one time or another. If you'd like to quote famous Father's Day speeches, it's simple to do.

Instructions

1. Locate speeches given by politicians and celebrities around Father's Day. For example, in June of 2007, Senator Barak Obama gave a Father's Day speech at the Mount Moriah Baptist Church in Spartanburg, South Carolina, a copy of which can be found on the Senator's official website (see Resources below). You can quote from these speeches when you make your own presentation.

2. Inject a speech from the heart with well-known or humorous quotes about fathers. Sites like ThinkExist and Quoteland.com have several examples of blurbs you can incorporate into your own speech (see Resources below).

3. Browse through books of Father's Day poetry and other Father's Day-themed books at your local library or bookstore. These books often contain famous speeches that you can memorize and quote at your own Father's Day event. You can find a variety of Father's Day poems and short speeches at PoetryForFree.com (see Resources below).

4. Look through newspaper archives from your hometown paper to find printed versions of Father's Day speeches given in your area. You can find newspaper archives at your local library or at the office of the newspaper itself.

5. Find lines in the speeches you read that adequately reflect your own personal feelings regarding Father's Day. Make photocopies of the speeches if you can, and highlight the lines you're going to use as quotes. If you can't photocopy the speech, write down the parts of the speech that you like, making sure to notate the name of the original speaker and the date and place the speech was originally given.

Tips & Warnings

• When you quote famous Father's Day speeches, be sure to give credit to the original speaker. A brief statement at the beginning or end of your quote telling the audience who came up with those words is usually sufficient, and it's a vital part of your own speech. You don't want to be accused of plagiarism!

• If you're giving a Father's Day speech of your own, write the important points (including the quote you intend to use) on notecards to carry to the lectern or microphone with you. Notecards are less cumbersome than full sheets of paper and will allow you to make eye contact with your audience more often.

Resources

• Father's Day Speech on the Barack Obama website
• ThinkExist for quotes about fathers
• Famous quotes about fathers from Quoteland.com
• Father's Day poems at PoemsForFree.com