Pride, hope and fear at naturalization ceremony in metro-east
More than 60 people officially became United States citizens during naturalization ceremony in Collinsville Wednesday.
The event took place inside of the Gateway Convention Center in Collinsville. The newest U.S. citizens, 61 in total, came from 27 different nations, as far away as Sri Lanka and Australia and as near as Mexico and El Salvador. Some had served in the military, worked as doctors and gotten married.
“I just feel relieved and proud,” said Giovanni Molendes-Arias, an army veteran who’d been working on the process since 1993.
Many of the new citizens say the process is strenuous and long.
“It’s a long drawn process,” said Raghav Govindrajan, a doctor at HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital, who worked on his citizenship for 15 years. “It feels surreal. It’s going to take a few days to sink in.”
Simisola Adefionie, who immigrated from Nigeria nine years ago, says the crackdown on immigration under the Trump administration added stress to the process.
“I feel so relieved,” she said. “Now I can go visit home without worrying about if I will be able to come back.”
Adefioie said it’s hard for immigrants to travel without fear of being entry back into the country they’ve come to know and love. When her father was dying, she elected not to attempt a visit out of concern she would be denied entry back into the U.S. Her mother still has not met her children.
“I have a friend with a permanent card and he can’t even go visit his father who just passed because he’s scared (President Donald Trump) won’t let back in,” she said.
Family and supporters of the new citizens shared some of their concerns for their immigrant neighbors.
“Today, I can’t help thinking there’s a little tinge of sadness to the ceremony, thinking of what’s happening to immigrants in this country,” said Diane Gideman of Belleville. “I hope I don’t have to be afraid for them.”
The League of Women Voters, a nonprofit volunteer group of women who help people register to vote, was just outside the ceremony room, helping people register as soon as their citizen certificate was in hand.
“It’s real important that they’ve taken the time and made the effort to get their citizenship — they’re probably more educated than the average American citizen on the constitution and the laws of the land,” said Darla Hoffmann, a volunteer with the group.
“It really touched my heart to see there are 61 people becoming citizens,” echoed fellow volunteer Debra Pitts, who was attending her first naturalization ceremony. “Even during this time when it’s hard for immigrants, they still wanted to be American citizens. They know the importance of voting — every vote counts.”
The event featured a host of judges and other public officials, including Steven Weinhoeft, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. Weinhoeft, who has twice been appointed to his position by Republican presidents, said devotion to individualist rights makes the U.S. strong.
“The role of government is of a protector of those rights, not the granter of those rights — it’s a very different idea than what we’ve seen in the history of the world,” Weinhoeft said.
This story was originally published July 4, 2025 at 4:00 AM.