When Armida Hipp first immigrated to the United States from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, 20 years ago, she lived in Yakima, Washington, and worked picking fruit in the orchards there. Now, Hipp, 55, is a naturalized American citizen, fresh off passing her tests and attending the naturalization ceremony in Helena on March 10.
For many years in the U.S., Hipp, who worked under a permanent visa, knew she wanted to achieve citizenship, but life got in the way. After working the orchards, she moved on to hotel work, starting as a housekeeper and moving her way up.
“It’s a good life,” she said last week. “I’ve lived here for 20 years. Everything is the best.”
Hipp and her family moved to the Flathead 10 years ago, and she has become the kitchen manager at a Kalispell hotel. Finally, last October, Hipp approached the staff at Literacy Volunteers of Flathead County, which offers U.S. Citizenship classes on a rolling enrollment basis.
She met up with Katie Lesar, who started working with Literacy Volunteers after moving to Montana from Texas, where she had earned her master’s degree in political science from Texas A & M University.
Lesar knew that of all the courses the Literacy Volunteers offer, teaching citizenship classes would be a perfect fit for her.
“I love to teach, and thought it would be a great way to use my education,” Lesar said.
Lesar and Hipp started meeting twice a week, usually after Hipp finished her shift at the hotel. Hipp, who lives in Columbia Falls, would have to be in Kalispell in time for her 4:30 a.m. shift to start, then work until 2 p.m. or 2:30 p.m., followed up by an hour or so of work with Lesar.
“I had the best teacher I had in my life,” Hipp said of Lesar.
Taking on the citizenship test requires dedication and hard work, Lesar said, because the amount of information the learner must take in is considerable.
“It’s a lot of time and effort,” she said.
A citizenship test requires a verbal interview with an immigration officer to establish the applicant’s background, followed by a civics and an English test. The English test includes reading, writing and speaking portions, and the civics test is verbal and takes place during the interview.
Each year, an average of 680,000 people become naturalized citizens of the United States, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Despite her busy schedule, Hipp wanted to take the test as soon as possible, but after applying had to wait about five months for the application to be processed. The teacher and student shifted to meeting once a week to accommodate Hipp’s schedule.
All of the work paid off in March, when Hipp passed her test and became a U.S. citizen. It’s made 2014 a banner year for Hipp, who was also selected as the employee of the year. Her pride in her accomplishments is evident and well deserved, and Hipp has no intentions of slowing down.
“Now is the best time for me,” she said. “I try to do the best I can.”
Her next goal is to continue working on her English skills – she’s a self-described “student for life” – because she wants to continue moving up in her job.
Hipp was Lesar’s first student in the citizenship course, and she was delighted with Hipp’s progress and success on the test.
“I’m elated for her,” Lesar said. “I could not be more happy.”
Lesar now has two students who are preparing for the test, which they will apply for when they are comfortable and ready to do so. But Hipp will always be an example of hard work paying off as part of an American Dream.
“It was one of my goals,” Hipp said of her citizenship. “And now I’ve got it.”
For more information on Literacy Volunteers of the Flathead and their various programs, which include citizenship, help with resumes, reading skills and more, call 406-257-7323 or email [email protected].