GIVING BACK
Yuman helps 8,000 immigrants become U.S. citizens
Marci Rios, 68, was in first grade the day he started on his journey towards U.S. citizenship. Every day the boy walked his dad to the border before heading off to his school.
During the day, his father worked in the agricultural fields of Yuma County. At night he returned home to his family in San Luis Rio Colorado, Mexico.
One day, a customs inspector asked his father about the boy who walked him to the port of entry. Petronilo explained that it was his youngest son. The inspector suggested he enroll the boy in school in the U.S. so he could learn English.
“Have his picture taken and come see me,” the inspector told the elder Rios.
Petronilo did as the inspector said. When the father and son
returned, inspector pulled out a student visa form. It cost $5. Petronilo emptied his pockets. He only had $2. The inspector put in the other $3.
And that’s how Marci Rios started attending school in the United States.
Marci, the youngest of 10 children, was born in Zacatecas, Mexico, to Petrolino and Juliana Rios. At the age of 4, his family moved to San Luis Rio Colorado.
When Marci was 8, his parents were admitted into the country as farmworkers under the Bracero program.
At the age of 18, Marci became a U.S. citizen. He never forgot the
inspector who put him on the road to citizenship. Many years later, when the inspector lived in a nursing home, Rios would regularly visit him, shaving and spending time with him.
The inspector would ask Marci why he visited him. “Sir, you were the one who opened the doors for me to come to this country. I’m just very grateful to you,” Marci would reply. The inspector died at the age of 98 in 2007.
He was the first in his family to become a U.S. citizen. When he did, “my life changed for the better,” Marci said.
The process to become a citizen was a lot simpler back then. He needed three reference letters from people who had known him for at least five years.
He had no problem finding people to recommend his good character. The first family he met in the U.S., the Morgans, who ran the Morgan Store, were very supportive and helped him fill out the application. They even paid for the stamps.
The second letter came from the Doug Mellon family, the farmers who employed his father as an irrigator. The third letter came from the Brown family, who worked for the Morgans.
The day of the citizenship ceremony, the teenager borrowed a tie from the neighbor and got a ride to the courthouse. His family was poor and didn’t have a car.
After the ceremony, he hitched a ride home from a Somerton woman who had also become a naturalized citizen on that day.
Since then, he has dedicated his life to giving back to the country that has given him so much, he noted. A successful businessman, Rios has used the fruits of his labor to benefit the citizens of this country however he can. He describes himself as an “advocate of the people and champion of the American way of life.
“I thank this country for receiving me because I’m an immigrant,” he said.
To show his gratitude, Rios has helped more than 8,000 immigrants from all over the world become U.S. citizens at no charge to them. At last count, the new citizens came from 49 countries, including Japan, Holland, Spain, Italy, Brazil, India, Vietnam, Korea, England, Canada, Mexico and several African nations.
“Because my life changed for the better, and by helping them become citizens, their life will become better,” Rios said.
One of his proudest moments was when his mother, Juliana Rios, became a citizen at the age of 87 in 1999. At the ceremony, he knelt before her and handed her a bouquet of flowers. She blessed him right then.
He also helped four of his sisters become citizens.
Whenever he meets a permanent resident who hasn’t applied for citizenship, he’ll ask them, “How come you’re not a citizen?” Some immigrants have been in the U.S. for decades, some at least 60 years or more with a resident card, but they’re nervous about the citizenship process.
Many immigrants are intimidated because the process is much more complicated today. The application, which was eight pages when Rios applied for citizenship, is now 20 pages. However, Rios is happy to guide applicants through the process.
Some immigrants are also afraid of failing the test. “There is no test,” Rios said. At least not in the sense they imagine. One “test” is the interview, which is more to assess a person’s character. Applicants are asked about drug use, arrests, illegal crossings, and other background questions.
The second part is a quiz on U.S. history. Applicants are given a booklet with potential questions. Ultimately, out of 100 questions, they might be asked 6 to 10 questions, for example, about the age a person is eligible to run for president or for the U.S. Senate. Rios will hold practice question-and-answer sessions with applicants.
The interview is conducted in English, but older applicants or for those who meet certain residency criteria, the interview and questions may be in their native language.
Rios has been invited to speak in countless citizenship ceremonies across the Southwest. He is honored to welcome the new citizens and offer them a piece of advice.
“If they become citizens, they will be well received, like I was,” Rios said. “How can they pay it back to the country? Get involved as a volunteer. There’s a big need for volunteers.”
That is what Rios strives to do, and he has been recognized for his efforts. The Daughters of the American Revolution awarded him with the Americanism Medal, and he was named 2005 Yuma County Citizen of the Year.
Additionally, former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno appointed him to the Citizens Advisory Panel for the Immigration and Naturalization Service and former Gov. Jane Dee Hull appointed him to the Arizona Civil Rights Advisory Board.
Rios also held appointments to the Judicial Performance Review Team for Arizona Supreme Court judges and Arizona’s Training Board of Commission and Ethics and was elected to the Yuma Union High School District’s governing board.
He also served on the advisory board for the Salvation Army and Boys and Girls Club for more than 30 years.
Rios is married to Carolina, and they have a son, Christian. When he’s not busy running his insurance company, he works as a personal trainer.
Rios invites immigrants who need help with the citizenship process to call him at 928-317-1797.