[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 7, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E838]
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

                         Tuesday, June 7, 2016

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and sincerity 
that I take this time to congratulate thirty-one individuals who will 
take their oath of citizenship on Friday, June 10, 2016. This memorable 
occasion, presided over by Magistrate Judge Andrew Rodovich, will be 
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 June 10, 2016, the following people, representing many nations 
throughout the world, will take their oaths of citizenship in Hammond, 
Indiana: Joseph Nderito Ndungu, Kareema Abbas Khazaal, Waqar Hikmat 
Mahmood Jbara, Guadalupe Garcilazo Coria, Joseph Githae Njoroge, 
Lawrence George Cartwright, Sridhar Meda, Hellen Wangari Gathesha, 
Isabela Patena Pascua, Haopeng Xie, Leslie Sorayda Lopez, Mario Vazquez 
Sanchez, Michelle Patena Santarromana, Verica Prentoska, Esmerelda 
Ortiz, Sridhar Punukollu, Marina Gramosli, Tasuli Gramosli, Maria 
Delgado, Bharath Ganesh Babu, Maria Angelica Garcia, Juvenal Gonzalez, 
Fabiola Guerra Alocilla, John Donghyun Kim, Ivy Cong Lu, Madhuri 
Punukollu, Emilio Soria, Alicia Tapia, Ernesto Abraham Velazquez, and 
Joseph Kamau Njoroge Venanzio.
   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 will 
become citizens of the United States of America on June 10, 2016. 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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