CITIZEN: Juniecelle Lim and Mikaela Lim, 2, (Filipino) with Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick at the citizenship ceremony. Photo/Ben Fraser
There were tears of joy and heartwarming stories at Rotorua's citizenship ceremony.
Family, friends and colleagues crowded the Rotorua Lakes Council Chamber as 29 people became New Zealand citizens today.
It was a ceremony that Mrs Juniecelle Tapales Lim had been to before.
Image 1 of 20: Baruelo family. (Filipino) Photo/Ben Fraser
Last time she sat with her 18-day-old daughter Mikaela while her husband JT received citizenship.
Today Mikaela, now 2-and-a-half years old, was at her mum's side as she took her own oath.
"Not only are my daughter and husband here, but also the midwives who helped look after me," she said.
"We've been joking at home, next time we travel I won't have to wait in the queue that says 'All passports'."
Mrs Lim said the passport was definitely a relief when they travel to and from the Philippines.
The decision to move to New Zealand was a difficult one for Mrs Lim who was working in Singapore at the time.
"I was never intending to go to Singapore," her husband said.
Mrs Lim said she didn't regret the choice and that it was definitely right for their daughter.
"Even without the citizenship we've always felt at home," she said.
Although she then admitted in her first week here she did have a bit of a panic.
"I thought, 'what have I done coming to this small rural town', it was such a change from urban Singapore," she said.
The Kawaha Point School Kapa Haka group performed for the new citizens, earning multiple rounds of applause for their waiata and haka.
Each family was gifted the book Choice and a seedling to lay roots here in New Zealand as they took their oath.
In total, five Filipinos, one Austrian, two South Africans, eight British, one Samoan, four Indian, two Fijian, three Colombian, one Malaysian, one Chinese and one Ukrainian became New Zealand citizens.
New citizens:
Ronald Cabiles Baruelo
Rose Vi Calilap Baruelo
Raven Kyle Calilap Baruelo
Rafael Joshua Calilap Baruelo
Genowefa Brunner
Gareth Brendon Collier
Madre Collier
Matthew Graydon Cooper
Carolyn Anne Fitch
Lopa Lemuelu Muliaga
Juniecelle Tapales Lim
Binoy Madathiparambil Bhavanandan
Narayan Reddy
Kusum Lata Reddy
Juan David Restrepo Velez
Ana Maria Sierra Sierra
Mariana Restrepo Sierra
Gordon Scott Thomson
Timothy Clive Gutteridge
Philip Nigel Pingram
Eng Chin Kee
Balasubramanian Kumaran
Scott William Marshall
Deborah Katherine McKernon
Manjula Pardal
Deepak Pardal
Xiuting Ruan
Luliia Tunik
Lewis Clive Whitworth
Hīkoi mō te Tiriti protester numbers are expected to swell.
