Kate makes confident debut speech Hundreds of people turned out to welcome the Duchess of Cambridge as she opened a hospice for sick children, and made her first public speech since joining the Royal Family. Kate gave an assured performance as she praised staff at the Treehouse in Ipswich for their "inspirational" work. The Duchess, who is the royal patron of East Anglia's Children's Hospices, looked confident, and while she sounded a little apprehensive, nerves never got the better of her. She had clearly memorised the short speech, which she wrote herself, as she only occasionally glanced at her notes. Kate apologised for attending the event alone, she said: "I am only sorry that William can't be here today, he would love it here. A view of his, that I share, is that through teamwork, so much can be achieved. What you have achieved here is extraordinary.