142 immigrants sworn-in as U.S. citizens at MFA ceremony

BOSTON — From 50 countries they came, a patchwork of customs and cultures, faiths and dialects -- now sewn into the fabric that is the United States of America.

Exactly 142 immigrants gathered in the Museum of Fine Arts Monday to become United States Citizens. Ten each from Brazil, China, Haiti and India, but the largest group was from the Dominican Republic.

For some immigrants, it was a deeply personal decision to become a citizen of the United States. For others, it was simply a matter of practicality.

Family brought Maria Elena Lawrence to this point.

"I moved here because I married an American and we have a beautiful baby girl," Elena Lawrence said.

The Ibraheem family, from Egypt, are all now U.S. citizens. It took Saherry eight years to take the oath.

"[I am] So proud, so happy," she told Boston 25 News afterwards. "It took a long time. Yes. It was worth the wait."

And so, what is ours is now theirs and vice-versa.

The pledge, the anthem, the flag. Their many journeys; their many stories -- all those things that make America, The Beautiful.

Cox Media Group