Father Efren Garcia recently completed the longest journey of his life. It began when he filed for a visa before entering the seminary in 1993 and ended when he became an American citizen on May 25.

“I felt such a happiness, such a joy, becoming a U.S. citizen,” he said during an interview at Sacred Heart Parish in Red Bluff, where he serves as parochial vicar. “It doesn’t happen like a magic thing. From the very moment I came here I started the journey to become a U.S. citizen. It was a long road, a hard road, but worth it.”

At the simple ceremony inside Sacramento’s downtown Crest Theater, 150 people from five countries became citizens.

“That gave us an idea how diverse and rich a country we are,” Father Garcia said.

No champagne corks popped, but it was a huge celebration for those who had completed an arduous, years-long ordeal of paperwork, background checks, fingerprinting, justice department scrutiny, and proficiency tests before the presiding judge declared them naturalized citizens.

A glance at Web site of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (www.uscis.gov) reveals a complicated application process that might overwhelm newly-arrived immigrants. When Father Garcia was accepted into St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, the Diocese of Sacramento provided a counselor to help guide him through the legal maze. All seminarians who arrive at St. Patrick’s from other countries receive the same assistance.

The first step was getting the initial visa from the American consulate in Mexico, with the hope of eventually acquiring the all-important “green card” which is given when an immigrant becomes a permanent resident. Citizenship usually follows a few years later.

“At the end of the visa period you either become a permanent resident or have to leave the country,” Father Garcia said, noting that his card arrived in 2000.

After he was ordained to the priesthood in 2002, he remained at Sacred Heart Parish in Anderson where he had served as a transitional deacon. He next ministered to parishes in Colusa and Willows. Since 2005, he has divided his time between the Red Bluff and Anderson parishes, helping with both the English and Spanish Masses.

Learning English was a difficult part of his move to the United States.

“There are rules, but so many exceptions,” he said with laugh, then became somber as he talked about the plight of immigrants who come to this country.

“Mexicans don’t come to America to waste time. We come with the will to work, to save money and have better lives. We all suffer from leaving our own families, but need pushes us to come here,” he said, adding that most cross the border to work seasonally and return to their homes in Mexico.

“I suffered discrimination, insults. All this gave me a great insight into myself to help those in need to get established so they won’t be abused or discriminated against.”

He is active in a group called the Pacific Institute for Community Organization (PICO), a national network of faith-based community organizations that works for social justice. He also helps provide direction and support for local Hispanic youth, especially in Red Bluff following a gang-related shooting in February.

He likes the northern counties of the state, and has felt warmly accepted. Both parish communities cheered his success when he returned from Sacramento a few weeks ago as the newest citizen in their midst.

“I have my best experiences here. Every good thing is happening to me in Northern California,” he said.

Father Garcia grew up with four brothers and a sister in Aguascalientes in the north central part of Mexico, about a 33-hour drive or a three-and-a-half hour flight from Sacramento. Using the computer skills he has taught himself, he downloaded a multimedia presentation of the small town where he was born to show a visitor.

“One day I hope to become a pastor, and do the best I can,” the 40-year-old priest said. “In the future, when my time comes to be retired, I’ll spend my time between here and Mexico. I have my grandmother’s house there, with good memories. That’s how I hope to be.”

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