Peta Murgatroyd Instagram
Dancing With the Stars pro Peta Murgatroyd is happy to announce she is officially an American!
On Wednesday, October 9, the 33-year-old dancer who is from Australia took to Instagram to share photos after she was sworn in as an official citizen of the United States.
“Yesterday was an emotional day for me. After countless US Visas starting from 2006 and the last 5 years with a Green Card, I am officially a United States citizen,” she shared alongside the photos.
She continued by sharing that the ceremony was very important and emotional for her, writing, “I’m getting misty eyed writing this, because I haven’t reflected on my life up until this point. I went deep down memory lane and I cried at the ceremony and then really cried in private.”
“Memories surfaced that I had forgotten about, wishes that I had made as a child in my backyard with a full moon and promises that I made to myself and my family. Everything came full circle and here I was sitting in an auditorium with 1000 people, with my Ukrainian/American husband and my American son….a girl from little Perth with a big dream of being ‘someone’,” she continued.
” I dreamt of performing on the worlds biggest stage, I dreamt of people knowing my name, I dreamt of being the best at my craft, I dreamt of making a difference in the world and most of all I dreamt of making my family proud and proving that I could do it at the highest level. I love the life I created, but it wouldn’t be possible without the United States giving me the chance to succeed and live in the best country in the world, where dreams really do come true. This country gave me my career, it’s where I found the love of my life, and it’s where my first child was born. This will always be home now.”
Murgatroyd concluded, “I looked around at the auditorium full of immigrants….their eyes were longingly filled with hope, faith and belief. I am an immigrant too. I will always be one, and I’m proud of it. Thank you USA for accepting me, I will continue to work and treat this country with the upmost respect. I will honor the flag and The Pledge of Allegiance. I don’t take this lightly. God Bless America @uscis #USCitizens #NewUSCitizen.”
Murgatoyd was born in New Zealand, but her family moved to Australia when she was only a year old. She came to America as the lead female dancer of Burn the Floor before joining Dancing With the Stars.
While on Dancing With the Stars she dated cast member Damian Whitewood for five years before their split in 2012. She went on to date another former pro, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, off and on since 2012 before the two became engaged in 2015. They welcomed their son Shai Aleksander in January 2017 and were married on July 8, 2017 in Long Island, New York.
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Telisa Carter
Telisa enjoys learning and writing about all things entertainment in the world of Hollywood. When she isn't catching up on her favorite TV shows, she likes to read, and obsess over all things football.