It was a perfect fit.
There were 150 people from some 30 countries who became Canadian citizens at an annual Calgary event that celebrates diversity on Tuesday night
And it seemed a fitting number to take the citizenship oath, given that 2017 marks Canada’s 150th birthday.
Coverage of Canada 150 celebrations in Calgary on Globalnews.ca:
This was the ninth year in which GlobalFest held a citizenship ceremony, and it was the biggest one yet.
GlobalFest producer Ken Goosen said there’s something special about anniversaries.
“This being Canada’s 150th, this really makes it a memorable year for them. And it’s one of those things whether it’s a centennial, bi-centennial or whatever, when there’s an anniversary it makes it extra special,” Goosen said.
In most cases, the new Canadians had already spent years in the Great White North.
Carla Castro was born in the United States but she grew up in Canada.
It was a special day for her.
“It’s an honour to be Canadian – I’ve been here all my life and I feel Canadian at heart, so to make it official is a pretty great day,” Castro said.
Muhammat Ashiq, who is originally from Pakistan, said Canada is a land of opportunity.
“This is a new day, new start of my life,” he said.
It was also special for Vladislava Serebryakova, a teacher from Russia.
“I haven’t realized it yet, to be honest with you, but that is something I’ve been dreaming from quite some time already, and I like Canada for many reasons,” Serebryakova said.
READ MORE: Citizenship ceremony, community celebrations mark Ontario’s Canada 150
And Kirsty Woolhouse and her daughters are from England.
“(I’m) very excited and very privileged to actually be here right now. It’s taken a long while for us to get to this stage and I feel very emotional and very happy,” said a beaming Woolhouse.
GlobalFest has grown into one of Calgary’s largest festivals.
It features cultural displays, food and entertainment, as well as nightly fireworks.
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