Sixty years after arriving here with his family, Briton Colin Styles is now finally one of us.
Yesterday in Wanganui he became a New Zealand citizen.
But why had it taken him so long to decide to take the big step?
Mr Styles, one of the oldest of the new citizens, said he came to New Zealand with his family in 1950 and had been able to move freely back and forth from Australia for work.
Going to Australia on an English passport was now "a huge problem" for him and becoming a New Zealand citizen would make it easier.
"It's crazy. I've got a tax number in NSW (New South Wales), but I can't use it," he said.
First a mechanical engineer and then a secondary school teacher, Mr Styles said he had always intended to get New Zealand citizenship but had been too busy. Mr Styles was one of 30 people from nine different countries who swore the oath to became New Zealand citizens in a ceremony in Wanganui.
There were four from Fiji, 12 from Britain, two from China, two from the Philippines, one from Zimbabwe, five from South Africa, one from Turkey, two from India and one from Malaysia present for the formal, flag-draped occasion.
Laws also called forward two girls from among the citizens and asked them to stand wearing his robe and chain for the ceremony.
He told them mayors didn't have to be old men and they should aspire to political office themselves some day.
Mr Laws outlined the many waves of migration that had peopled the islands of New Zealand.
Since the 1990s there had been two new waves. One, of Asian people, brought new energy and capital and "great new foods", he said. And there was a fifth wave of southern Africans, leaving their countries because of adversity but extremely helpful for New Zealand's health system.
In a first for Wanganui, former British citizen Stephen Rayner chose to make his vows in Maori.
After 60 years, he's finally a NZ citizen
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