“When I came in this morning ... you looked around and you saw families with their loved ones, and you saw their pride and joy at the process. You looked around, and that’s when it sank in. I don’t know what everybody’s story is. I’m intrigued to know how they got here, what their story is."

“I think the beauty of it is knowing that we’re all different,” he added. “That’s what makes this ceremony great. Everyone’s coming from a different background. Everybody has their own personal touch that they can add to the community.”

This was not a day for political differences, but several of the new citizens aired their views, especially on the proposed travel ban targeting immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim nations. And not everyone was strongly opposed to it.

“It burdens my heart that they’ve banned the travel,” Sue Meh, 54, from Burma, said through an interpreter, her daughter Beh. “I don’t know how to explain it. It just hurts.”

But Aponchuk, from Ukraine, had a mixed view.

“I’m not like a fan of the ban, but they should do more investigation of the people with a bad background,” he said. “If you did something bad in the country where you came from, they should at least keep an eye on you.”