YAKIMA, Wash. -- After living in the United States for 20 years, Ana Diaz wanted to become a U.S. citizen.

She was already a legal permanent resident with a green card that enables her to work. But Diaz wanted the right to vote for the country's leaders, including president, and have better job opportunities.

The lengthy application with all its legalese and the cost to apply, however, kept her from pursuing citizenship.

"I don't have the money to pay for an attorney," said Diaz, who is unemployed.

But on Saturday, Diaz was able to get free legal advice and begin the naturalization process during the Citizenship Day event at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Yakima.

Volunteers from OneAmerica, a nonprofit immigrant advocacy group, and the Washington chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association provided legal advice to more than 50 people who completed citizenship applications.

The application, which costs $675, is the first step in naturalization, a process that takes on average six to eight months.

Participants learned about fee waivers and loans to pay for the application. They also received information on how they can get help studying for the citizenship test and for the interview that comes later in the process.

"There's this huge fear (among some immigrants) that if they don't do this right they will be deported," said Jennifer Chan, the Washington New Americans Project Associate for OneAmerica. "It's a lot of information to present and it can be difficult to gather everything."

Similar events were held across the country Saturday, as well as around the state in Wenatchee, Vancouver and Tukwila.

The events are part of the offerings from the Washington New Americans program, a partnership between OneAmerica and the state of Washington to help legal permanent residents successfully pursue citizenship.

Most of the participants in the Yakima event were Latino, though there were some immigrants from Asian and African countries. Some brought their children, who are U.S. citizens, to give support.

Jessica Rivas, 19, came home from the University of Washington for the weekend to help her mother, Manuela Araiza, 53.

Rivas said her mother, who works at a fruit warehouse, felt that citizenship would open up more job opportunities.

But she feared her lack of English skills would keep her from gaining citizenship.

Araiza learned that while some fluency in English is required, legal permanent residents 50 and older can take the citizenship test in their native language under certain conditions.

That was good news for Jesse Solis, 69, of Yakima. The retired farm and warehouse worker felt his inability to read or write in either English or Spanish was a major roadblock.

He was encouraged to pursue citizenship by his children -- most of them who are already U.S. citizens, said his daughter Guillermina Alejo, 46, who attended the event with Solis.

The next challenge for Solis is to save up for the application fee. He hopes to submit his application by December.

But like his experience Saturday, he'll likely get some help with paying the fee.

"I think the sons and daughters will help him collect the money," Alejo said.

* Mai Hoang can be reached at 509-577-7685 or mhoang@yakimaherald.com.