Seven U.S. military veterans are now also American citizens, following a small ceremony Friday at the Albuquerque Veterans Memorial.

    They hail from Cameroon, Honduras, the Philippines, the United Kingdom and Mexico, and have served in all the different military branches. Some have lived in the United States since they were children, while others have been here only a couple of years. All were taking advantage of the military’s streamlined citizenship process.

    “I always wished to be an American,” said Cyril Tanlaka, who moved to Santa Fe from Yaounde, Cameroon, in January 2011.

    Tanlaka decided to join the U.S. Army Reserve in August 2012, taking time off from earning his master’s degree in chemistry at New Mexico Highlands University. He’d always wanted to join the military, but found it difficult in his home country.

    A year later, he has become a U.S. citizen. He’s looking forward to continuing his education and settling in after a difficult transition to American life.

    “When I came here, I never had any family,” he said. “It was hard to cope, with education and finances.”

    Tanlaka’s girlfriend and cousin, who have both since moved to New Mexico, joined him for the Friday ceremony.

    Another new citizen, Maria Isabel Rascon, has lived here since she was 4 or 5 years old, but she was always worried about not being a full U.S. citizen. When she joined the Marines, she saw a quick, free process toward citizenship.

    “It was always kind of hanging over me,” she said. “I always felt like there was not that freedom there.”

    Being a citizen, Rascon said, would let her take her husband’s name for free — instead of costing $600 — and give her the chance to finally participate in the democracy she had sworn to defend.

    “I’ll vote for anything,” laughed Rascon, a stay-at-home mom and entrepreneur. “I’ll definitely use that power to the fullest.”

    The other new U.S. citizens include: Wilson Avila Duron of Honduras, Emilio Ernesto Acosta Gamboa of Mexico, Derek Daniel Oliveros of the Philippines, Yurikoaokio Motomochi Livas of Mexico, and John McAtasney of the United Kingdom.