Three spouses of Airmen in Norway earn citizenship

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Joel Mease
  • 501st Combat Support Wing Public Affairs
Three spouses of Airmen stationed at the NATO Joint Warfare Center and the 426th Air Base Squadron took their oath of allegience to become citizens of the United States Aug. 19 in Stavanger, Norway.

A very complex process for the new citizens: Andrea Rodriguez-Sanchez, Rowena Jarman, and Cornelia Jude was made simpler thanks to a law passed in 2008 that allows the spouse of a US servicemember to not have to travel to the United States for any part of the nautrilization process as long as they are stationed overseas.

"The whole process for my wife has taken some time as she got her permanent Residence almost four years ago while we were stationed in Turkey," said Master Sgt. Douglas Jarman. "We had always planned to one day go back to the US to get her citizenship, but in January 2008 President Bush made it easier and now spouses are able to do it overseas at U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services offices."

To add to the ease of the spouses an immigration officer was even willing to come to them in Norway instead of them traveling to them.

"The U.S. Embassy in Frankfurt was willing to send a person to Stavanger to conduct the interviews, testing, and naturalization ceremony," said Master Sgt. Cristobal Rodriguez. "If they wouldn't have done this our families would have had to fly to either, London, Frankfurt, or Rome to conduct the naturalization process. This was a huge cost savings for my family not to include all the stress of traveling with three small children."

After all the i's were dotted and t's crossed, the emotion for the families were especially strong for reaching an important milestone in their families lives.

"It was a very emotional day for me, especially when my wife raised her right hand and repeated the oath of allegiance," Sergeant Rodriquez said. "I am very proud of her. Becoming a U.S. citizen will open numerous possibilities for her life and career."

"I have reflected upon the fact that so many of us are born into US citizenship we take for granted," said Sergeant Jarman. "It is a big thing to have that blue passport and be able to call yourself an American citizen."

When Sergeant Rodriguez asked his wife the next day, how she felt about being a U.S. citizen, she said, "It felt right, I know I made the right choice."