It was all part of a naturalization ceremony on the deck of the Battleship New Jersey in Camden.
"This is a special day, special weekend very proud," said Shawn Awode.
Awode is from Liberia and says he's honored to be able to wear his US Marine Corp. uniform as an American.
"Best feeling in the world. Why? It's the best country in the world," said Awode.
People waved the red, white and blue and reflected on what it all means.
"It means a lot to the people who know the value of freedom," said Muhammad Imran Ismail.
His 14 year journey to become a US citizen has inspired his young American born son.
"I understand it's hard, you gotta push through to reach goals and always reach for the stars," said Dayyan Imran Shaikh.
For Roxann Bardall, it took $10,000 and 19 years for her to make family history as the first to become an American citizen from the Philippines.
"It took a while to get here since 9 and I'm now 28," said Bardall.
The naturalization ceremony wraps up a weeklong 4th of July Freedom Festival on the Camden waterfront.
