FAITH — Faith Deputy Clerk Natasa Cornelius was surrounded by family, colleagues and friends on Friday as she took part in a naturalization ceremony and officially became a United States citizen.

Cornelius officially took the Oath of Allegiance at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Charlotte on Friday, the last step in what she said was the long process of becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen.

“I didn’t know what to expect, but it was actually wonderful. There were 70 participants from 34 countries. It was official, but it was still so relaxing. The ceremony itself is very interesting, it was fun. The guy leading the ceremony, he did it very nicely. Everybody felt welcome and warm and we were all so proud to become U.S. citizens,” said Cornelius

Cornelius was born and raised in Rijeka in western Croatia. She said that she often finds herself explaining that she does not hail from Russia because both are Slavic countries with some similarities. Instead, she said she hails from port city on the northeastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, just east of Italy.

Her journey to U.S. citizenship began after she moved to Macedonia, now called Northern Macedonia, for work. There she met her future husband Larry Cornelius, she said, who was working for the U.S. embassy as a private contractor.

The two moved around quite a bit due to Larry’s work with the embassy, with her working in administrative roles as well. Cornelius made her first trip to the United States in 2011, although she said that was only as a tourist. She established her permanent residency in 2012, but because of the “complicated” rules surrounding naturalization, she was not eligible for citizenship until recently, she said.

Cornelius said that despite establishing her permanent residency in 2012, the family moved out of the country for various periods of time for the next seven years that made her ineligible for citizenship, as the USCIS requires a naturalization candidate to have resided in the country continuously for three years.

That clock began when the family, with son Martin in tow, settled down in Granite Quarry in 2021. Cornelius said that the family chose Rowan County because Larry is from the area.

“It took a long time for that too because of his work. It takes a while to have all the ducks in a row. Finally, I’ve gotten approved, I have all the conditions fulfilled,” said Cornelius.

Both Larry and Martin were at Cornelius’ naturalization ceremony, of course, but she was also supported by her colleagues in the town’s administration department and all of the members of the Faith Board of Aldermen who were able to make it.

“My family and my colleagues, the board, it was really awesome that they came with me. Absolutely honored that they want to come with me and share this with me,” said Cornelius.

Town Clerk Karen Fink and Administrative Assistant Teri Hart were both there along with Mayor Randall Barger and board members Jayne Lingle and Laura Evans.

The board members’ support of Cornelius’ efforts has been a constant topic of conversation at prior meetings, as the members have continuously expressed their excitement for the deputy clerk’s efforts.

“Isn’t it something? I think it’s just wonderful that she’s this excited to become an American,” said Barger at the December meeting where the board learned that Cornelius had been awarded her citizenship.