I'm in Charlotte, NC which has one of two USICS offices in NC. There is a long-standing relationship between the local chapter of the League of Women Voters and the USICS office. LWV volunteers are invited to attend each and every naturalization ceremony. Every new citizen gets a NC voter registration form on their chair and they are encouraged to stick around after the ceremony to get assistance in filling out the form. (We collect the forms and either deliver them or mail them out to the county BOE).
Recently, they have been holding three back-to-back ceremonies every Friday to get as many people naturalized before the election as possible. We usually have 60 - 75 new citizens at each ceremony and we usually get ~2/3 - 3/4 to register on the spot (depending on whether the ceremony is running late and the persuasiveness of the person doing the ceremony). The League tries to schedule 3 or 4 volunteers per ceremony with some very dedicated people doing 2 ceremonies back to back.
It is very rewarding and I usually do 1 - 2 ceremonies per month. I can definitely attest to the fact that many new citizens appreciate America more than a lot of people born here do!
This is so great to hear, Cheryl. I'm looking forward to canvassing some in October in Charlotte. I wonder if new citizens will be in our minivan lists. I imagine not. I wonder how we could get to them--if we should.
I'm in Charlotte, NC which has one of two USICS offices in NC. There is a long-standing relationship between the local chapter of the League of Women Voters and the USICS office. LWV volunteers are invited to attend each and every naturalization ceremony. Every new citizen gets a NC voter registration form on their chair and they are encouraged to stick around after the ceremony to get assistance in filling out the form. (We collect the forms and either deliver them or mail them out to the county BOE).
Recently, they have been holding three back-to-back ceremonies every Friday to get as many people naturalized before the election as possible. We usually have 60 - 75 new citizens at each ceremony and we usually get ~2/3 - 3/4 to register on the spot (depending on whether the ceremony is running late and the persuasiveness of the person doing the ceremony). The League tries to schedule 3 or 4 volunteers per ceremony with some very dedicated people doing 2 ceremonies back to back.
It is very rewarding and I usually do 1 - 2 ceremonies per month. I can definitely attest to the fact that many new citizens appreciate America more than a lot of people born here do!
This is so great to hear, Cheryl. I'm looking forward to canvassing some in October in Charlotte. I wonder if new citizens will be in our minivan lists. I imagine not. I wonder how we could get to them--if we should.