Enohel Polanco, a native of the Dominican Republic, became a naturalized U.S. citizen after living in New Jersey for five years. As a minor league baseball coach, he has played for teams in 17 different states over 14 seasons. Polanco studied American civics extensively to pass his citizenship test, getting help from his coaching colleagues. He registered to vote and is eager to participate fully in his adopted country, seeing this Fourth of July as his first chance to truly feel like an American citizen while celebrating freedom and independence.

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Enohel Polanco’s “First” Fourth of July
By Paul Braverman
In 14 seasons of playing minor
league baseball, Enohel Polanco
played for 20 different teams in the
United States, and one in Canada.
In all, he suited up for teams located
in 17 different U.S. States. Each
season, the native of Puerto Plata,
Dominican Republic was treated to
a Fourth of July fireworks show in a
ballpark somewhere. But as the colors
explode over Sovereign Bank Stadium
on this July 4, the Revolution bench
coach will no longer be a guest.
Five years after moving to New
Brunswick, New Jersey, Polanco
became a naturalized United States
Citizen in a ceremony on June 19,
something he had been aiming for
since he first took up permanent resi-
dence in the country.
“My wife and my step children are all
citizens, and this was important to
me. There are so many opportunities
that come with being a citizen,” said
Polanco.
Indeed, it’s humbling to realize how
Americans take some of those oppor-
tunities for granted when you talk to a
recently naturalized U.S. Citizen.
“You can speak freely here, you have
freedom to be yourself, it’s great,” said
Polanco, reminding us of a simple
freedom, but obviously the one which
sticks out most to newcomers. But for
Enohel, the reasons have much more
to do with family, and far less with poli-
tics.
“Now that I am a citizen, it’s much eas-
ier to get a tourist Visa or a green card
for my mother, and my brothers who
live in the Dominican to come visit us.
Now we can spend more time together
and it’s great.”
Hopefully that family time comes soon in
the offseason for Polanco, his wife Lizette
Delgado Polanco and their step-children
Brianna Earle, Joshua Rodriguez and
Justin Rodriguez. Because it’s been a
tiring and whirlwind month for the Revs
coach. After formally applying for citi-
zenship in March, the government sent
Polanco a letter detailing what had to
be done first in the process.
Now a United States citizen,
this holiday will be a little
different for the Revs coach

2. www.YorkRevolution.com 43
“I needed to go to New Jersey and get
my fingerprints done, and some other
things for a background check. They
needed to know I haven’t been in jail,
and don’t have any drug things or any-
thing like that. You know I was okay
there,” laughs Polanco.
Well Enohel certainly had nothing
to worry about, the problem was the
appointment was scheduled for the
morning of April 26, the day of the
Revolution’s season opener in Sugar
Land, Texas. So Polanco skipped the
team flight two days prior, and caught
his own flight to Texas that day, arriv-
ing at the ballpark in the third inning.
Those first steps laid the groundwork
for his formal interview, and the test
he had to pass to make his citizenship
official. If you’re looking for a quick
refresher on American civics, just ask
Enohel Polanco. It’s as fresh in his
mind as anyone’s.
“When I first applied, they gave me
information about the United States,
things that would be on the test, things
they want people to know about the
country. They even gave me CDs with
it, so I could listen to everything while
I drive,” Polanco said.
“But ever since I moved to New Jersey
five years ago, I was thinking about
the day I would become a citizen, it
was very important to me. So I read a
lot of books and watched a lot of mov-
ies that would help me learn about the
United States,” he continued.
Indeed, Polanco’s efforts to learn
about his adopted country stretch
back much further than March, and his
accomplishment is well earned. Even
though he first began playing in the
U.S. in 1995, he really had to make a
concentrated effort to get up to speed.
“Even though a lot of us (from Latin
America) are here in the U.S., when
we’re here we have to focus on the
game, and not much else. The last
five years, I’ve focused on this,” said
Polanco.
Many of the questions are basic
things; where is the U.S. Capitol, who
was the first President, why does the
American Flag have 50 stars and 13
stripes, and who is the Governor of
your state? But the vetting of a new
citizen does go deeper, and let’s just
say “it takes a village” when it comes
to the Revolution family.
“One day we’re sitting in here, and I
asked him who becomes President if
the President and Vice President are
unable to serve,” said Revs Pitching
Coach Mark Mason. He didn’t know,
so I told him to remember it’s Speaker
of the House, because that’s some-
thing they might ask.”
“Then in the interview, the very first
question they ask me is who is President
if the President and Vice President die.
I shouldn’t have, but I put my arm over
my mouth and laugh,” demonstrates
Polanco. “They were wondering why I
was laughing, but hey, I answered cor-
rectly so we just moved on. I guess
they thought I thought it was an easy
one since I laughed.”
It’s usually not hard to catch Enohel
Polanco laughing and smiling. But the
smile on the perpetually bubbly Polanco
is even more noticeable lately. In the
Revolution clubhouse between games
of a doubleheader on June 19, hav-
ing become a U.S. Citizen just hours
earlier, he walked around the club-
house exclaiming “it was today, I am
an American.” He was grinning ear to
ear, his voice tingeing with a mixture of
great pride and relief. He had to again
rush back from New Jersey to join a
game in progress, so Player-Coach
Liu Rodriguez subbed for Polanco as
third base coach for the beginning of
game one of the twinbill.
“We put up six runs in an inning with
Liu over there, and 17 for the game,

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so I told Polo he was fired as soon as he got back,” joked Mason after York’s
17-2 win over Sugar Land. Luckily for Polanco, he also delivered a win back
at his third base coaching post, as the Revs took the night cap 6-0 from the
Skeeters as well.
The pressure doesn’t end there for Enohel, as it’s an especially interesting time
to become a new U.S. Citizen, with a Presidential election looming in the fall.
When Polanco was naturalized, he also registered to vote.
“I could never vote in the Dominican, because I was always in America during
the elections. Even in May, they voted for President, but I was here. I don’t
know who I am going to vote for in the election.”
When asked if he was just being bi-partisan or politically correct, Polanco an-
swered in the negative.
“I really don’t know yet, I’m not really political, but I have to see and make some
decisions. But I will vote.”
It sure sounds like after all the work Polanco put in to become an American, he
won’t just let his civic duties slide now that the hard part is over. On this Fourth
of July weekend, in an ironic way, the holiday may mean the most to the man
who’s been an American for just three weeks, opposed to those of us who’ve
been one since birth.
“It is emotional for me. In the interview, they want to see how much English you
speak, how much you understand, what you do for work. They asked me about
how much I’ve been in the United States, how my career went. And they said,
‘you know what, you do pretty well.’ That made me feel good.”
If that isn’t validation enough, when the fireworks rise high above Sovereign
Bank Stadium, in Polanco’s mind that’s when it will be truly official.
“I feel like this is finally my July 4th. I’ve always enjoyed it because it’s a great
party, watching people celebrate freedom,” he said. “But now I am feeling that
too.”