27 brand-new US citizens welcomed in Sullivan MONTICELLO — The American fabric grew stronger by 27 people Friday. In a courtroom at the Sullivan County Courthouse, Judge Stephan Schick presided over a ceremony welcoming 27 people from 17 countries as new citizens. They came from Brazil, Colombia, Ghana and India. They came from China, Kyrgyzstan, Nicaragua and the United Kingdom. Zoe Penford of Callicoon left London to work for a year in the United States and loved it so much she stayed, then meeting her husband, Kelly Penford. Eight years after she first arrived, Penford received her citizenship papers from Schick. I didnt imagine eight years ago that this would be happening, said Penford, 39. Its a very special day. Commissioner of Jurors George Cooke led the Pledge of Allegiance and County Clerk Dan Briggs administered the Oath of Allegiance before Schick spoke about his background as the child of immigrants, his belief in the Bill of Rights and the countrys status as a magnet for immigrants. It truly is an agglomeration of people from every different area of the world, he said. It makes our country better and stronger that we have so many people that can get along. Yadira Gutierrez, 22, is majoring in education at SUNY Cortland. Nine years ago, the Woodridge resident left Honduras as a 13-year-old to join family in the United States. I knew this was a good country, so I thought I should come here and study and be a U.S. citizen, she said. August will mark 19 years as a U.S. resident for Lydia Stewart, 47. But Friday was the first day as a citizen for the Dominica native. She came to the country after marrying a man from Callicoon, and now has a daughter. The citizenship process was not difficult, except for the requisite multiple trips to New York City, said Stewart, who felt jitters when her name was called Friday. Its done. Its real now, she said. Life is good. Andres Felipe Trujillo Gomez, front, and a group of other brand-new citizens say the Pledge of Allegiance during the naturalization ceremony held Friday at the Sullivan County Court House in Monticello.Dawn J. Benko/For the Times Herald-Record lsparks@th-record - See more at: recordonline/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140315/NEWS/403150315#sthash.hd4GPa9g.dpuf
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 23:58:54 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015