During our busy lives, we sometimes forget how lucky we are to live in America and to have the liberty and freedom that comes with being an American citizen.

We also often lose sight of the fact that the United States is a country founded, shaped and led by immigrants and their descendants.

I was recently able to pay tribute to the milestone of one of my office staff taking the citizenship oath.

Inna Mirzoyan works part time in my Senate office in Lansing, and she recently became a proud U.S. citizen. She is a testament to everything that made America the greatest country on Earth, and I am honored to have her working for the people of Southwest Michigan.

Seeing someone achieve their dream of citizenship is both energizing and humbling. You are energized at the idea of new hope and innovation, yet humbly reminded that your relatives once stood in Inna’s spot.

Inna reminded me of the value of liberty in the world and the privilege we too often take for granted – that of being a U.S. citizen.

Inna said that when she became an official United States citizen, she was surprised to be overcome with emotion, since she had lived here since she was four years old.

She said, “However, one piece of paper signified years of struggle my family has endured and getting honored on the Michigan Senate floor showed me that the American Dream is becoming much more of a reality.”

Yes, it is clear the American Dream is alive and well. Inna’s parents were born in Azerbaijan and worked as lawyers until they moved to Ukraine to flee the genocide against Christian Armenians. As a young girl, Inna immigrated to the United States from Ukraine with her parents and brother. She is now in her final year at Michigan State University, where she’s studying social relations and policy.

As the struggle for freedom in Ukraine is in the news and the issues of immigration are vexing folks in Washington, I am proud to welcome Inna as a new American citizen.

 

Sen. John Proos, R-St. Joseph, represents the 21st District, which includes Berrien and Cass counties and most of Van Buren County.