Military heads help welcome island's newest American citizens
In honor of Military Appreciation Month, the District Court of Guam included speakers Rear Admiral John Menoni and the Adjutant General Esther Aguigui to welcome the roughly 50 new American citizens into our country. Two naturalization ceremonies were hosted in Chief Judge Frances Tydingco- Gatewood's courtroom this morning.
Maj. Gen. Aguigui's speech reflected on the day she took her oath of enlistment and what taking a pledge means to her.
"And as soon as he administered the oath of enlistment, I immediately felt a strong sense of patriotism," she said. "I felt as if I were invincible. And I really felt a sense of belonging to something bigger than myself on that day we pledged an oath to our way of life," she said. "So ladies and gentlemen I submit to you today, that we serve an oath--a common oath. An oath that we volunteered to take. Today we made a promise, a promise bigger than life itself.
In addition, Aguigui was newly appointed to serve as the Guam Homeland Security advisor.
May has been marked as Military Appreciation month since 1999 when it was first designated by Congress to ensure the nation was given the chance to show their appreciation for past and present troops.