Twenty area residents from 19 different countries took the oath of allegiance in a ceremony between the third and fourth innings of a Dayton Dragons game at Day-Air Ballpark.
Lawandi — who now goes by Lawandi-Riegel after marrying her husband Tim in 2018 — met her family in the basement at Day-Air Ballpark near the Dragons’ clubhouse after the ceremony, as did the other immigrants. She posed for photos with her family, including her son Tim Jr.
She was born in Kuwait and said she has lived in other places in the Middle East, in addition to Greece.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
“It’s been exponentially better,” Lawandi-Riegel, who lives in West Carrollton, said of living in the United States. “When I moved here in 2014, I actually met him in 2017, and I told him, ‘You know, Tim, I’m moving out in 2018 because I was graduating college and I’m going back home. And it wasn’t that route.
“But it’s been great. We’ve been struggling together. We’ve been getting blessed together.”
U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Gentry and U.S. District Judge Michael Newman led the ceremony along the third-base line and afterward presented immigrants with their naturalization certificates in the stadium’s basement.
“This is a really special event,” Newman said. “Not many cities have (events) like this.”
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a little over 800,000 immigrants were naturalized last year.
In general, immigrants must spend at least five years a lawful permanent resident to be eligible for naturalization, and those who marry a U.S. citizen must be in the country as a lawful permanent resident for at least three years. For those who became naturalized citizens in 2024, the USCIS reported the median time spent as a legal resident before becoming naturalized was 7.5 years.
Naturalization applicants must pass a test showing an ability to read, write and speak English and showing an understanding of U.S. history and government.
“I had to work on it a little bit, but it wasn’t too difficult, because I learned a lot of U.S. history growing up,” Lawandi-Riegel said.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Tung Xuan Nghiem, who immigrated from Vietnam, attended high school in the United States, which he said was a benefit in preparing for the naturalization test.
After taking the oath and receiving his certificate on Tuesday, he met with his wife Martha, a Dayton native, and celebrated.
Nghiem attended Cedarville University and met Martha, who was studying at Wright State, at an International Student Ministry event. They have been married five years, live in Dayton and are reviving a historic house in St. Anne’s Hill.
Nghiem lived in Idaho and Indiana before moving to the area to study at Cedarville. He said he’s proud to have become a citizen.
“The USA is made of immigrants,” Nghiem said. “We just add diversity and bring unique culture to the USA. I think we bring a lot of talent and love. It’s a core of the U.S.”
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
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