By Claire Gaglione, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer

For 20 Dayton-area immigrants, May 29 marked their first day as American citizens. In a naturalization ceremony presided over by Judge Thomas Rose in U.S. District Court at Dayton’s Federal Building, men and women from as far away as Chad, Russia, and Iran took the Oath of Allegiance to the United States.

As these new Americans began their lives as fully naturalized citizens, Joe Bettman and Henry Guggenheimer — members of Jewish War Veterans Post 587 — handed out copies of the Bill of Rights to each one. Volunteers with Dayton’s JWV post have been distributing copies of the Bill of Rights at area naturalization ceremonies for so long, neither Bettman nor Guggenheimer recalls when the practice began.

JWV members who have been fixtures at the ceremonies in recent years include Dr. Ron Gilbert and former Post Commander Larry Briskin. After the oath and the judge’s remarks, members of local civic organizations congratulate the new Americans and offer their services.

On this day, Guggenheimer spoke to the new Americans about his own naturalization in 1944. He reminded the new citizens that they had a responsibility to tell their children about what their homeland was like, not only for the preservation of their culture, but also to emphasize what many take for granted: the rights and privileges afforded to Americans.

Bettman said that receiving a copy of the Bill of Rights signifies to new citizens “that they really are Americans…that these rights are now yours.”

“The Bill of Rights shows how we respect everyone regardless of race, national origin, and so on,” Gilbert said. “Here, you succeed based on your own efforts.”

“Every veteran was fighting or serving because freedom doesn’t come free,” Bettman said. “Even now, people are in dangerous places, fighting for the freedoms we have.”

To read the complete August 2014 Dayton Jewish Observer, click here.