25 people gain citizenship at Naturalization Ceremony in Gulfport

A naturalization ceremony was held in Gulfport, welcoming in 25 new citizens.

It was the end of a journey, but the start of an adventure as people took their oath of citizenship and joined our nation.

Twenty-five applicants from 11 different countries were joined by friends, family, and U.S. District Judge Taylor McNell to take their last step toward citizenship.

This has been years of work that finally paid off. They each took an oath of citizenship, recited the pledge of allegiance, and sang the national anthem.

Judge McNell encouraged our new citizens to remember where they’re from as they navigate their new home.

Robert Brister was on a mission trip in Honduras when he met Jenn. As they say, the rest was history. Jenn Brister moved to the United States. “It was hard for me to leave Honduras just because I have my family there, but it was also just a great opportunity for me to, you know, embrace a new culture and learn a new language.”

The two married and started a family, but for them to continue growing their lives, Jenn applied for citizenship. Today, she became an American. “Just being able to, you know, just being able to display that level of patriotism and civicism together, it’s really important for us. I’d say it’s exciting and it’s a sense of accomplishment to be finally done.”