Compatriot Stephen McClanahan of the Cincinnati Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution welcomed 44 new citizens from 15 countries at a naturalization ceremony held on Tuesday, March 17th, at Lakota East High School.
The Honorable Judge Beth Buchanan officiated the ceremony, with not only family and friends of the new citizens in attendance but the entire student body as well.
Stephen McClanahan has participated with Gerry Knight and Jack Bredenfoerder over the past few months. Most of these events are held in the Federal Court building but not all, such as today’s event. When they are conducted in high schools, the attendance is much higher, not only from students but from school administrators, local government officials, and some members of the public at large.
Stephen McClanahan at a recent Naturalization Ceremony in 1770’s military uniform
Stephen notes that he gets there early and takes time to talk with attendees prior to the event officially starting. Being dressed in a 1770’s military uniform inevitably attracts attention. These conversations permit opportunities to explain the SAR presence at these events, who is the SAR, the significance of our forefathers original fight for freedom and how the founding of our Country is foundational to the Ceremony they are about to witness and participate in.
Stephen was instrumental in arranging for one of the Naturalization organizers to come to speak at one of our upcoming meetings to share the Naturalization process and journey for those seeking US Citizenship.
Looking forward to learning more at that presentation!
The next such Naturalization Ceremonies (not including those at the Federal Court building) are:
April 24 – St. Veronica School
April 27 – Cincinnati Country Day School
June 25 – Taft National Historic Site
Welcome Home!!!
For the past several ceremonies, I have used this time to casually walk about and engage people. For the lack of anything more creative, I will simply pause and begin explaining my uniform, who the Sons of the American Revolution are, why we are here and how the founding of our Country is foundational to the Ceremony they are about to witness. Not very rehearsed or polished, but it seems to work.
The next such Naturalization Ceremonies (not including those at the Federal Court building) are:
April 24 – St. Veronica School
April 27 – Cincinnati Country Day School
June 25 – Taft National Historic Site
