|
|
|
|
|
| |
|||
If you're going to become a citizen of the United States, you might as well do it in one of the country's most beautiful spots.
On Friday, 37 people from 16 countries took part in a naturalization ceremony at Yosemite National Park. The event is part of a new partnership between the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of the Interior's National Park Service.
Officials conducted ceremonies all week at such places as Ellis Island in New York, the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and the Great Sand Dunes in Mosca, Colo.
Kerstin McDermott was among those taking the oath at the amphitheater near Glacier Point in Yosemite. The 37-year-old German native called the setting "breathtaking."
"Looking out into the valley it was just beautiful," she said. "I can't describe it."
According to the USCIS, more than 650,000 men, women and children will become naturalized United States citizens this year.
"There is an enduring connection between the American people and our national parks, which this partnership celebrates by presenting new opportunities to enhance the meaning and stature of citizenship ceremonies," director Emilio T. Gonzalez said when announcing the partnership. "National parks provide the perfect backdrop to citizenship ceremonies and allow the National Park Service to build connections between new citizens and America's system of national parks."
The ceremony at Yosemite started with two mounted rangers entering the area carrying the state and national flags. The assembled group, natives of everywhere from Mexico to Afghanistan to China, sang the "Star Spangled Banner" before taking the oath of citizenship.
For McDermott, it was the culmination of an adventure that began 17 years ago when she came to the United States on a cultural student exchange.
"I came to improve my language," McDermott said. "Then I met my husband, and he wouldn't let me go home."
Kerstin and Joe McDermott have been married 16 years, as of this week, and have two daughters, 8 and 3.
Kerstin McDermott worked at California State University, Stanislaus, as an accountant. She left the job this summer to prepare for the certified public accountant's exam.
She said she was happy to become a citizen in Yosemite, one of her favorite places.
"What better place to have it?" she said. "What a beautiful country."
At the conclusion of the ceremony, the new citizens were treated to a symbol of their adopted homeland: fresh apple pie.
"It was really good pie," McDermott said. "Still warm."
|
|
|
|