It’s been a long time coming, Matthew Mckena reflected. There were hiccups in the process. But by midday Friday, he was officially a U.S. citizen, in time for the country’s 250th birthday, and welcomed by Gov. Josh Shapiro, a George Washington reenactor, and even a bald eagle.
“It just became a battle of perseverance, but also we’ve come so far,” he said. “The hope in itself is also in the waiting, and so it’s now coming in full circle. It’s just unbelievable of having waited for so long for something, and then finally having it.”
Mckena, 21, was one of 63 people from 17 counties to take their oaths as new citizens in Valley Forge on Friday. For many of them, who ranged in ages 18 to 87, the day was a culmination of years of effort and lives they’d built in the country.
Mckena’s siblings were born in the United States, before his family moved back to Kenya, where he was born. When he was in high school, his family returned to the U.S. He’s now a college student pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering.
“[There are] so many opportunities that have been afforded with this move to be at a place where it’s so easy to access education infrastructure,” he said.
Helene Hartmann Dirani, 42, has called a few nations home: Originally from Kazakhstan, she moved to Germany at 13 years old, and then studied in Austria. She later met her now-husband in the United States. After years of long-distance dating, they settled down, and she moved to the country 13 years ago. Three children later, the ceremony felt like a special moment for Hartmann Dirani.
“Being with my husband and my children, and settling down is really what makes it so special,” she said.
The naturalization ceremony was held one week before America’s Semiquincentennial in historic Valley Forge. Chester County Court of Common Pleas President Judge Ann Marie Wheatcraft called the new citizens’ attention to that legacy.
“Valley Forge reminds us that citizenship is not simply inherited, it is claimed often at a great cost, and many of the many of us take that for granted. You understand better than most,” she said. “You chose America. You worked hard for this. … Bear with us your gifts, your culture, and all that makes you unique.”
America has always been “a land of dreams” for Rohan Bakshi, 45. He came to the country from India in 2012, and has felt a part of the country. He built a life, family, and career here. After so many years, this was a “dream come true,” he said.
“This is the best country to live in,” said Bakshi, whose wife will be sitting in his seat soon, as she pursues her own citizenship. “I’ve seen other countries as well. It’s a privilege to be an American citizen.”
Lina Zhang, 41, felt emotional as she waited to take her oath. Roughly 14 years ago, she moved from China to the United States. In the beginning, her English “sucked,” she said. But she learned fast: attending GED classes, using her translator app to translate English to Chinese, and then translating back to English, so she could take her exams.
Her hard work earned her some of the highest marks her teacher had seen in years, she said. She went on to college, majoring in accounting and minoring in finance, landing a job with a public accounting firm.
Surrounded by her family Friday, she was glad to be sitting at the ceremony.
“I’m proud of myself,” she said.
Speaking to the new citizens, Gov. Josh Shapiro recognized the work each person had put in to reach this moment. But, he warned: “As new Americans, your work is just beginning.”
Recalling Ben Franklin’s famous quote, “A Republic, if you can keep it,” Shapiro told them those words — “if you can keep it” — was their charge.
“Each successive generation of Americans have continued that work, caring for their neighbors, standing up for freedoms that our founding fathers fought for, taking an oath of citizenship, working in the halls of Congress, the halls of our state capitol, the halls of our county — that work now falls to each of you to be engaged American citizens,” he said.
After the ceremony, Mckena said, from his experience, a lot of people discount the value of American citizenship.
“There really is a high cost that a lot of people pay, and there really is a huge disparity in what democracy offers and what the rest of the world offers, and so really it’s a special opportunity,” he said. “People who already had it [should] really treasure and understand it. And for those who don’t, seek after it.”
This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer’s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com/donate. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org/supporters.
