August 25, 2026 
1–2 p.m.
Chautauqua Institution  
Chautauqua, NY

U.S. DISTRICT COURT  
~WESTERN DISTRICT OF NY~  
Honorable George B. Daniels  
The Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission 

Opening Remarks | Amit Taneja - Interim Chief Advancement Officer and Senior Director for Community and Belonging 

Court is Convened 

Welcome and Keynote Address | Honorable George B. Daniels- Southern District of New York  

National Anthem | Lara Downes- pianist and arts advocate and Kurt Elling-jazz singer and songwriter  

Greetings from Erie County | Mark Poloncarz Erie County Executive 

Presentation of Motion | USCIS Officer Cavarello 

Administration of Oath | Judge Daniels 

Pledge of Allegiance | led by a new citizen 

Distribution of Certificates | Judge Daniels, USCIS Officer Cavarello 

Closing Remarks | Dennis Galucki, Chautauqua Institution's Buffalo Day Founder 

Court Adjourns 

OUR NEWEST CITIZENS COME FROM THE FOLLOWING 18 COUNTRIES: 

Argentina
Bangladesh
Belarus
Bhutan
Burma
Canada
Chile
Congo (Kinshasa)
Cuba
France
India
Iraq
Jamaica
Nepal
Pakistan
Somalia
Spain
Ukraine

League of Women Voters Chautauqua

Buffalo Passport Agency

New Neighbors Coalition 

The Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission 

Chautauqua Lake Schools for the Standing American flag

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light, 
What so proudly we hailed at the 
twilight’s last gleaming? 
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, 
thro’ the perilous fight; 
O’er the ramparts we watched, 
were so gallantly streaming. 
And the rockets red glare, 
the bombs bursting in air, 
Gave proof through the night 
that our flag was still there. 
Oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave 
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely  
renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign  
prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I 
have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and 
defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America  
against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

I pledge allegiance to the Flag  
of the United States of America,  
and to the Republic for which it stands,  
one Nation under God,  
indivisible, with liberty  
and justice for all.