GEORGETOWN, Del. - La Esperanza, a nonprofit organization that assists Latino and immigrant communities in Sussex County, held its fourth annual citizenship celebration Friday evening at Delaware Technical Community College in Georgetown to recognize 23 new U.S. citizens and share their journeys to citizenship.
Among them was Andrés Lucenti Álvarez, who became a U.S. citizen last July and was recognized alongside his father, Angelo Lucenti Cascone, who became a citizen in September, after their family migrated from Venezuela due to political and social challenges.
"My parents didn't want us growing up in Venezuela at the time," Lucenti Álvarez said.
"We had a summer house here, so we came here for the summer," Lucenti Álvarez added. "My parents decided not to leave, so we enrolled in school, and it's been 10 years since then."
Lucenti Álvarez said that since he moved to the U.S., he wanted to become a citizen.
"Actually becoming one, after all the struggles my parents went through and all the hardship they endured just to get me, my dad, and my brother, to try to become citizens, it means a lot," Lucenti Álvarez noted.
Lucenti Álvarez said he was 8 years old when his family migrated, describing the transition as a significant change.
"I like the city, but it was definitely a great change of pace coming from the city, all the dangers in there, to more of a peaceful, quiet town where we could grow up," he said.
His dad first migrated from Venezuela to Italy with his family when he was 7 years old.
For Bryant García, executive director of La Esperanza, the celebration reflects the experiences of many people in the community. García, a son of immigrants himself, acknowledged ongoing concerns.
"We are in a moment that a lot of us don't feel safe," García said.
He also pointed to continued interest in building a future in the United States.
"There are a lot of people who still see opportunity and a chance to create something for themselves and their families, and I think that drives a lot of people to still want to pursue citizenship," García said. "Our hope is that we can shape the future, even though this is a moment that we're unfortunately going through. My hope is that we can continue to build something better, together and not just thinking about protection, but thinking about making something that's meaningful and worthwhile."
García said the event highlights what citizenship represents for many families.
"It's a time to celebrate this amazing achievement for a lot of folks in our community, U.S. citizenship, and now more than ever, for a lot of the families that we serve, the sense of belonging of being able to stay here is relevant, is more relevant than ever," García said. "That's something that a lot of people really want, and also the ability to be able to vote and to be able to have a say in federal elections is really important to people."
"All of this just really highlights one of the things that La Esperanza has always done, which is help people integrate and find what success means for them," García added.
La Esperanza says they help between 50 and 60 people become U.S. citizens each year, with 23 attending Friday's celebration.
"For a lot of our families, belonging to the United States is success, and this is just one of those events where we get to celebrate them, welcome them completely. They were our neighbors before, and we welcomed them before, but now, they enjoy the full rights of citizenship," García noted.
Rony Baltazar López, the director of the Delaware Office of New Americans, was one of the guest speakers of the night. Baltazar López is a son of immigrants himself.
Governor Matt Meyer also addressed attendees.