Jul 4, 2008 5:56 pm US/Eastern
Cheney Surprises New U.S. Citizens In Boston
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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Vice President Cheney and his wife Lynne greeted the new citizens before taking part in the reenlistment ceremony aboard the USS Constitution in Boston.
WBZ
It was a memorable Independence Day for 26 New Citizens – with a surprise visit from Vice President Dick Cheney.
Twenty-six people were sworn in as American citizens alongside the U.S.S. Constitution in Charlestown on Friday. They came from 20 different countries, including Lebanon, Uruguay, Ireland, South Africa, Syria, Nepal, New Zealand and India.
Jill Hackett says she's been fascinated with America since she was a child in South Africa. Now an American, she says, "It's a dream. It's a great country and I'm really proud to officially be a part of it now."
She lives here with her husband, Jim, and works at a company that provides health care for people in need. After the ceremony, Jill said, "It really was very emotional. I just feel overwhelmed and grateful and honored, and privileged, and just incredible, really incredible."
Richard Haddad is the first person in his family to be a citizen of a country. He is from Lebanon, and is a Palestinian refugee, so no one in his family was able to be a citizen there. He says, "I'm just overwhelmed, it's exciting. I feel so happy I have the opportunity to be an American citizen."
He lives here with his wife, Elizabeth and their 5-month-old daughter, who are both Americans, and says he treasures his new rights and opportunities. "It means a lot because I'm from a country where there's always civil war in it, there are no human rights in it. There's not a lot of things you're allowed to do. And the United States gives you all these opportunities, all these rights, it's just makes you feel free. It's such a great a nation"
After the ceremony, Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne, arrived by motorcade and took pictures with the new citizens and shook each person's hand.
Then the Vice President and Mrs. Cheney went onboard "Old Ironsides" for its reenlistment ceremony in Boston Harbor.
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