WILMINGTON — The University of North Carolina Wilmington, in conjunction with the Wilmington Rotary Club, welcomed 37 new citizens to the United States in a naturalization ceremony Wednesday morning.
Michael Beaudoin, president of the Wilmington Rotary Club, kicked the ceremony off with a speech praising the “incredible” effort these people had put forth in order to become U.S. citizens.
“I witnessed such a ceremony 20 years ago, and it impacted me dramatically, and it stuck with me, as something that I wanted to have a part in creating again,” Beaudoin said.
Marcos Castells, supervisory immigration services officer for the U.S. Office of Customs and Immigration, then spoke to the diversity of the new citizens, and North Carolina as a whole.
The new citizens, who are all residents of North Carolina, came from a total 20 different countries, covering almost every walk of life.
“Many people maybe won’t associate North Carolina with diversity, or perhaps they just think it has to be a larger metro area, but this is one of the more diverse places I’ve lived in, and I’ve lived in quite a few places.” Castells told the applicants.
The new citizens’ home countries included: Jamaica, Venezuela, Cameroon, the Philippines, India, Mexico, Cuba, the United Kingdom, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (Burma), the Republic of Serbia, Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Costa Rica, South Korea, the Peoples Republic of China, Honduras, Chile, Haiti, and Canada.
Becoming a citizen
UNCW Chancellor Jose V. Sartarelli, himself a nationalized citizen, then took the stage.
“Fourteen years ago, on Jan. 3, 2003 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, I had the honor of pledging allegiance to the United States of America, as a citizen,” Sartarelli said. “It was an emotional day for my family and me, just as I know that this day is very meaningful to each one of you.”
After first visiting the country over 60 years ago, Sartarelli seized the opportunity to become a U.S. citizen following the terrorist attacks on Sept, 11, 2001.
“It’s like a new birth, it really is,” Sartarelli said. “It’s a long winded process, going through all the tasks it takes to become a citizen. It’s a lot of work, and it’s very emotional, but it’s all worth it.”
“This great nation of ours’ is built on the strength, innovation, dedication and determination of immigrants,” Santarelli said to the crowd. “I grew up in Brazil myself, and part of my heart will always beat for my home country, but in my soul, I’m an American, just like you new citizens we celebrate today.”
After reciting their “Oath of Allegiance” to the United States, the participants had the opportunity to say the “Pledge of Allegiance” for the first time as citizens of the United States.
“We, the people of the United States, truly believe in the ideals outlined in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights,” Santarelli said. “And we expect our leaders to be guided by the laws and principals of our nation, and to answer to us, rather than the other way around.”
“Many of us came from countries where laws are written, but not observed. This is a country of us, and I like that,” Sartarelli said. “Long may you live and succeed, in the land of the free, and the home of the brave.”
Franklin Etarock, one of the 37 immigrants to be nationalized today, had this to say when the ceremony was done: “Although I may have come from Cameroon, today, I am a proud citizen of the United States of America.”
