Lexington hosted its last Patriots’ Day weekend celebration on Saturday — a naturalization ceremony where 49 people took the oath of citizenship on the Battle Green.
This was the first time anyone has been naturalized on the lawn where the Battle of Lexington took place 250 years ago, Craig Sandler, president of Lexington Historic Museums, noted.
“By taking your oath as a citizen here today, you’re making this place more historic,” he said during the ceremony.
“You are the living fulfillment of what those men on this green fought and died for,” Stephen Cole, captain commanding of the Lexington Minute Men, told the group.
With over 100 spectators watching, the group of people from the Dominican Republic, Poland, Ireland, Algeria, Ukraine, Lebanon, and many other countries felt anxiety and excitement before taking the oath.
“I’m very nervous, but I’m very proud of myself and very grateful to my husband and my family for supporting this process,” Silvia Aguilar, a woman who gained US citizenship during the ceremony, told LexObserver. “I’m so excited because after this, I’ll feel complete.”
“I’m living here with my family now, so I see us here long-term, building a future for us,” Eduardo Lopez, another newly naturalized citizen said. “This means the start of new opportunities and long-term investment in my whole life.”
Five members of the US military — Rafael De Cunha, Theo Gordon, Marek Jarczynski, Nhat Hieu, and Celestine Gomes — gained citizenship at the ceremony. You do not need to be a citizen to serve in the military, you only need to have a green card.
“This is a big step because I’m already part of the US Army, but unfortunately, just being a part of the US Army and not being a citizen is not enough,” Gomes told the Observer. “Being a citizen opens a lot more doors for me to fully explore and take advantage of the opportunities that are going to come forth, so this is pretty important. It is a huge deal for me.”
The ceremony began with a presentation of the colors by the Lexington Minute Men Honor Guard and a performance of the National Anthem by Epp Sonin, founder of Lexington Music School.
With their right hands in the air and their left holding a small American flag, the group rose and repeated Erik Siebert, the naturalization clerk for the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, in the Oath of Allegiance.
The new citizens vowed to renounce their allegiance to the foreign state of which they were a citizen of before naturalization, support the Constitution and laws against enemies, bear arms to protect the nation if needed, and more. Family and friends jumped out of their seats to take pictures and videos of their loved ones as they took that oath.
Paul Levenson, Magistrate Judge for the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, congratulated the new citizens and noted they “really know the value of citizenship.”
“Some Americans who were born here take it for granted,” he said.
Speakers urged the new citizens to vote, be active citizens, and give back to their communities.
“It’s now your responsibility to exercise these rights and endow them with meaning,” Cameron Hickey, keynote speaker and CEO of the National Conference on Citizenship, said. “Citizenship is about the role you play in being an active citizen in your community…embrace your citizenship proudly.”
“Don’t say one vote doesn’t count, your vote counts,” Sophia Ho, a Lexington resident and recipient of the Minuteman Cane Award, said. “I believe you take, you enjoy, but you also need to give back.” Ho, who has lived in Lexington since 1965, also immigrated to the US and became a citizen.
The ceremony ended with three “hip hip huzzahs” from the Minute Men. And a bonus “huzzah” from Sandler.
Afterward, the new citizens who live in Lexington could register to vote at a table hosted by Town Clerk Mary De Alderte on the Battle Green.