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Citizenship, immigration services available on Fairchild

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Benjamin Stratton
  • 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. --  An immigration services officer from the Spokane Field Office will be in room 107 of the base education center the last Wednesday of each month at 1 p.m. to assist anyone with immigration questions or concerns.

"U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has been available to assist individuals on Fairchild for some time but not a lot of people knew about it," said Ken Bawden, USCIS supervisory immigration services officer at the Spokane field office. "We were formed to enhance the security and improve the efficiency of national immigration services by exclusively focusing on the administration of benefit applications such as permanent residency (green cards) and naturalization."

Bawden said the 92nd Air Refueling Wing command chief, Chief Master Sgt. Rudy Lopez, assisted the USCIS by making arrangements for the organization to serve military, civilians and their family members on base.

"The Air Force is fortunate that we are able to recruit and enlist Airmen from among America's best citizens. Each stepping up to serve this great country for a variety of reasons, all setting out with different goals and objectives that motivate them," Lopez said. "One common thread that links Airmen together is a sense of servant-leadership to do our very best for the nation. For many servicemembers, U.S. citizenship is one of those goals. Gaining formal acceptance by the country they call home is a powerful motivator."

"I'm proud to have played even a small part in making the dream of citizenship a reality, if only by helping to make the immigration process easier and less intimidating to navigate for our service members and their families," the chief added.

Having this service on base is essential as face-to-face interviews are required for those filing applications for permanent residency and naturalization, Bawden said.

"When possible, these [interviews] will be scheduled and conducted on-base, thereby saving the applicant the expense and time of traveling to the downtown office," he said.

Bawden said he and his team are committed to easing the burden of military members and their families navigating the immigration system.

"We look forward to serving the entire Fairchild community," he said.

For more information, visit the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov.