[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 105 (Tuesday, July 8, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1115]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    CONGRATULATING OUR NEW CITIZENS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 8, 2014

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and sincerity 
that I take this time to congratulate the individuals who took their 
oath of citizenship on July 4, 2014. In true patriotic fashion, on the 
day of our great Nation's celebration of independence, a naturalization 
ceremony took place, welcoming new citizens of the United States of 
America. This memorable occasion, coordinated by the League of Women 
Voters of the Calumet Area and presided over by Magistrate Judge Andrew 
Rodovich, was held at The Pavilion at Wolf Lake in Hammond, Indiana.
   America is a country founded by immigrants. From its beginning, 
settlers have come from countries around the world to the United States 
in search of better lives for their families. The oath ceremony was a 
shining example of what is so great about the United States of 
America--that people from all over the world can come together and 
unite as members of a free, democratic nation. These individuals 
realize that nowhere else in the world offers a better opportunity for 
success than here in America.
   On July 4, 2014, the following people, representing many nations 
throughout the world, took their oaths of citizenship in Hammond, 
Indiana: Lucy Lucia Griffith, Susete Margarida Psimos, Ricarda 
Kurzinski, Salma Mardi, Sulka Tyagi, Andrija Cesljarev, Mira Cesljarev, 
Juana Cruz Lopez, Teodoro Obien Abadilla, Daliborka Nonkovic, Maria Del 
Rosari Gonzalez Carrillo, Tyson Francis, Irene Garcia Garcia, Ilija 
Trajanoski, Jagoda Markovska, Mary Ugonwa Hardin, Daniel Lodewikus 
Smith, Sophia Johanna Ca Smith, Alma Delia Torres De Gonzalez, Toni 
Kitevski, Jefferson Marcos Caldeira, Esther Mukabacondo, Alejandro 
Escobedo Roman, Majid Latif, Xuan Loc Thi Hoang, Paulina Joanna 
Jagodzinska, Ivy Mwansa Chirwa Cox, Philip Papai Muturi, Maria Soledad 
Araos De La Fuente, Manuel Garza, Hector Javier Balza Medina, 
Wladyslawa Skauba, John Munene Njiru, Rosendo Hernandez Fierros, Noreen 
Nothando Ncube, Dolores Irene De Santiago Martinez, Dmitri Valentinov 
Boulanov, Haralambos Nikolaos Kladis, Meilute Ona Zinkus, Severo 
Ramirez Madera, Tatiana Silvia Sanjines Del Llano, Danica Rnic, Janette 
Atillo Jasmin-Wallace, Ana Ma Galicia Reyes, Angelica Maria Saucedo De 
La Cruz, Ma Teresa Valdovinos, Gerald Joseph Oblina Rinon, Darshan Lal 
Wadhwa, and Mustafa Musleh.
   Though each individual has sought to become a citizen of the United 
States for his or her own reasons, be it for education, occupation, or 
to offer their loved ones better lives, each is inspired by the fact 
that the United States of America is, as Abraham Lincoln described it, 
a country ``. . . of the people, by the people, and for the people.'' 
They realize that the United States is truly a free nation. By seeking 
American citizenship, they have made the decision that they want to 
live in a place where, as guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Bill 
of Rights, they can practice religion as they choose, speak their minds 
without fear of punishment, and assemble in peaceful protest should 
they choose to do so.
   Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask you and my other distinguished 
colleagues to join me in congratulating these individuals, who became 
citizens of the United States of America on July 4, 2014, the day of 
our Nation's independence. They, too, are American citizens, and they, 
too, are guaranteed the inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness. We, as a free and democratic nation, congratulate 
them and welcome them.

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