[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 168 (Monday, November 16, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1618]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       RECOGNIZING NORTHWEST INDIANA'S NEWLY NATURALIZED CITIZENS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 16, 2015

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and sincerity 
that I take this time to congratulate thirty individuals who took their 
oath of citizenship on Friday, November 13, 2015. This memorable 
occasion, presided over by Magistrate Judge Paul R. Cherry, was held at 
the United States Courthouse and Federal Building 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. Oath ceremonies are 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 November 13, 2015, the following people, representing many 
nations throughout the world, took their oaths of citizenship in 
Hammond, Indiana: Lenka Krstevska, Bertha Esthela Corral, David Tugba 
Tom, Raul Alonso Moreno Gonzalez, David Alarcon Hernandez, Yulia 
Yurevna Abair, Serena Taisir Ibrahim, Donna Ruth Ajayi, Hayet Adjerid, 
Celestino Olivares Manzo, Mijoon Lee, Thuy Thi Hong Le, Ezekiel Attah, 
Catherine Marjorie Charles, Francisco Alonso, Astrid Mariela Arnold, 
Chao Jung Chou, Maria Rosario Franco, Nancy Fuentes, Mayra Nancy 
Martinez, Jeff Nguefack Mbeleke, Maria Clemencia Mireles, Duncan Kanyi 
Nganga, Agnes Hop Nguyen, Veronica Giovana Perez, Mario Renteria, Oscar 
Martinez Ruiz, Yareli Sandoval, Perla Villanueva, and Dilcia Victoria 
Young.
   Although 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 Constitution, 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 November 13, 2015. 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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