Current
State bound
Jefferson junior diver Sam
Wallace will compete in the
Class AA state meet.
Page 15
BLOOMINGTON / RICHFIELD
Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019
More than 200 become U.S. citizens in Richfi eld
By RAYMOND T. RIVARD
[email protected]
More than 200 indi-
viduals – 201, in fact –
along with their families
and friends fi lled much
of the gymnasium at the
Academy of Holy Angels
gymnasium Tuesday, Feb.
19, for a Naturalization
ceremony.
The ceremony was a
highly emotional and joy-
ous affair where the oath
of citizenship is taken and
U.S. citizenship earned
and granted.
It’s an important, yet
exciting moment in time
for those taking the oath
of citizenship and earning
the right to vote and as-
sume the responsibilities
that come with being a
citizen of a constitutional
federal republic.
The event, hosted by the
Richfi eld Human Rights
Commission and held for
the fi rst time at the school
in Richfi eld, was complet-
ed in partnership with the
Academy of Holy Angels.
In addition to school
offi cials and the AHA
Social Justice Club help-
ing to host the event, the
Catholic school students
also provided the music,
which included patriotic
songs, including “The
Battle Hymn of the Re-
public,” “Yankee Doodle
(SUN CURRENT STAFF PHOTO BY RAYMOND T. RIVARD)
Forty-seven Somali individuals stood in recognition of the largest group that was to earn their U.S. citizenship at the naturalization ceremony held in Richfi eld Tuesday, Feb. 19.
Dandy” and the “The Star
Spangled Banner,” among
others.
Dozens of countries
were represented at the
ceremony, coming to the
United States from as far
away as Syria, Russia,
China, Somalia, Guate-
mala and Canada.
Maria Regan Gonzalez,
the new Richfi eld mayor
who is also the fi rst Lati-
na mayor in the state, was
on hand to provide com-
ments, along with former
Richfi eld Councilmember
Michael Howard.
The oath was overseen
by United States Bank-
ruptcy Judge Robert J.
Kressel.
Regan Gonzalez pro-
vided a heartfelt welcome
to the new citizens-to-be
and described her own
family’s journey in be-
coming citizens of this
country.
“My mother left her en-
tire family and everything
she knew behind in search
for a better life for her
future family,” she said
with her own emotions
rising to the surface, her
voice cracking under the
emotion of the moment.
Kressel
was
more
straightforward in his
comments, saying, “I
hope you preserve your
native language, heritage
and culture. Doing so not
only enriches the lives of
those in your families, it
also enriches America and
all of us living here.”
According to a press
release provided by the
Richfi eld Human Rights
Commission, “Natural-
ization is the process by
See Citizens , PAGE 1
Peace of mind.
By far, our most popular product.
Volume 49, No. 10
Index
Opinion-Page 4
Public Safety-Page 6
Calendar-Page 9
Arts-Page 12
Sports-Page 15
Metro-Page 20
Classifieds-Pages 23-26
Sun Newspapers | 10917 Valley View Road
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
current.mnsun.com
facebook.com/SunCurrentCentral
@suncurrent
PUBLIC NOTICES: See page 21
612.798.7100 rbcu.org