1. Youngest Grad Remarks
Given by First Lieutenant Francis Q. Hoang
At Kansas City Area Founder’s Day Dinner
On March 27th
, 1999 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Brigadier General Abizaid, Brigadier General Wood, distinguished guests, fellow graduates,
Good evening. My name is First Lieutenant Francis Hoang, USMA Class of 95, Company F-1,
and I have the dubious honor of being this year’s Youngest Grad.
Life for West Pointers has never been easy. From R Day to Lake Frederick to Term Ends to
Buckner to Branch Night to Grad Week, our lives have been filled with stress, apprehension, and
in some cases, downright terror. But few terrors match that of finally graduating, reporting to your
first unit, thinking West Point behind you, only to get that fateful phone call: “Excuse me, but are
you Lieutenant Hoang, Date of Birth 26 Sep 73? Planning on attending Founder’s Day?”
I was the Youngest Grad 3 years ago at Europe’s Founder’s Day, an honor that I had no wish
to repeat but which fate, destiny, and a direct request from my senior rater has once again led me
too. In fact, besides these two speeches, I’ve helped advise two other Youngest Grad speakers,
making me somewhat of a subject matter expert in this area. This being the case, I’ve decided to
complete a much needed reference work on Founder’s Day Speeches. In cooperation with the
Center for Army Lessons Learned and the Association of Graduates, I’m publishing a special
Army Circular entitled “A Youngest Grad’s Guide to Giving Founder’s Day Speeches,”
appropriately subtitled: “You can run, but you can’t hide, how to survive the speech without being
hazed like it’s R-Day and you have the words “Go Navy, Beat Army” written across the back of
your Gym Alpha.”
The first page of this circular has two words in large bold print: “Be brief.” “After all,” and I
quote directly from the Circular: “No one really cares what the youngest grad says, as long as they
don’t take too much time saying it.”
The next section of the circular helps the youngest grad understand the purpose of their
Founder’s Day speech. The most common mistake a Youngest Grad makes is thinking that they
were invited to speak because people actually wanted to hear what they had to say. This is not the
case. The sad truth is that the youngest grad is there to entertain the older graduates. In some rare
instances the youngest grad does this by being funny or insightful, but in most cases, they
accomplish this by mostly squirming and making a fool of themselves behind a microphone.

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Much like Firsties who often enjoyed watching Plebes crack under the pressure of reciting the
days, there is a sort of perverse pleasure in watching a new addition to the long gray line make
inane comments about themselves while wishing that their parent’s decision to have a child had
been delayed just a little longer. There is also the added bonus of seeing how many members of
the Long Gray Line the Youngest Grad can insult in a five minute speech.
With the purpose of the speech firmly in mind, the youngest grad must now pick a topic for
their speech. The circular recommends something light-hearted, upbeat, personal, with a
humorous angle. Some examples of good speech topics:
 “Millenium Man: My epic journey towards 1,000 hours on the Area”
 “Knee Surgery at West Point: How I completed this graduation requirement courtesy of
Intramural Sports.”
 “Dr. Seuss, the Cat in the Hat, and the Cadet Mess: What Really Happened to Green
Eggs and Ham” and
 “3 Ice Cubes if the OC is wearing paratrooper boots: tales of courage from a former Cold
Beverage Corporal.”
Of course, all too often, Youngest Grads pick the wrong topic for their speech, dooming
themselves to an evening of ridicule at best and a hostile crowd of Old Grads at worst. Some
topics highly not recommended:
 “Leadership Lessons from my 2 months on Active Duty.”
 “A history of USMA Acronyms: Why G-3’s TAC as the OC gave me 3 and 3 for bad
BAG when I was SOG during TEEs.” And, of course, never, ever give a Founder’s Day
speech entitled:
 “The Corps Hasn’t: A lesson in Consideration of Others for Insensitive Old Grads.”
Finally the circular states that the speech should remind the audience of their days back at the
Academy and reassure them that while some things have changed, the important things remain
the same. After all, West Point continues to be a bastion for freedom, an arsenal of democracy, a
fortress for liberty; a place where men are men, women are women, everyone wears grey, and the
OC can still quill you for late lights. West Point continues to be an ivory tower where character is
strengthened, will is tested, and discipline is forged; a place where Duty, Honor, Country are not
concepts to be learned, but ideals to be lived; a home for those who choose the harder right over
the easier wrong, for those who choose selfless service over selfish pursuits, for those who
choose PMI on Friday rather than AMI on any other day of the week. West Point continues to be
our beloved alma mater, our Hell on the Hudson, our Woo Poo U, our Rockbound Highland
Home, our Hudson Valley Technical Institute, our best four years of college we never had. In a
word, West Point continues to be home, even when we are far from it. Home is where the heart
is, and part of our hearts will always be with West Point.

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My personal journey to West Point began in 1975, when, a few days before the fall of Saigon,
my family and I were airlifted out of Vietnam by the US military. Ten years later, I would find
myself standing in front of the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial in Washington DC, when, moved
with emotions I never knew I had, I swore I would someday, somehow repay the debt I owed the
military for rescuing me. Fifteen years after leaving Saigon, I found that way and accepted an
appointment to the Military Academy. Twenty years after leaving Saigon, only a couple of months
away from Graduation, I once again returned to the Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial – this time to
lay a set of cadet rank and give thanks for all that this country has given me. And now, twenty
four years after leaving Saigon, I am here before you, a proud member of the same military that
rescued me so many years ago.
As this year’s Youngest Grad, I am proud to stand along side the Oldest Grad and every
Graduate in between, as a member of the Long Gray Line. Thank you for this opportunity to
speak. I hope I never have it again. Go Army! Beat Navy!