"We are very, very grateful to New Zealand and to the people of New Zealand for the opportunities we have had here."
Sebastiana was in tears as she accepted her citizenship and shared an enormous hug with the friends who had come to support them.
Their son Erick is now a Year 13 student at Rotorua Boys High School.
"It's been a long journey. We have been in New Zealand now for seven years," he said.
"I am proud to be in my final year at boys high and next year I will be going to university to study a Bachelor of Arts and teaching."
A total of 30 new Kiwis were welcomed, with four from India, nine from Fiji, three from El Salvador, seven from the Philippines, two from Korea and five of British origin.
Pupils from the Rotorua Seventh-Day Adventist School perform for the citizenship ceremony. Photo / Stephen Parker
To open the ceremony pupils from the Rotorua Seventh Day Adventist School gave a kapa haka performance.
They sang waiata, performed poi and did a haka, dedicating one of their songs to the late Aunty Bea.
Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick spoke at the start of the ceremony about the "diverse family of Rotorua growing and growing".
