On July 4th at Seattle Center Fisher Pavilion over 500 individuals will participate in a Naturalization Ceremony to complete the process necessary to become citizens of the United States of America. These individuals are the newest additions to the diverse citizen community of America. They continue a multiple century tradition of people from around the world who sacrificed significantly to come to America to live in our environment of unparallel freedom and opportunity that is offered equally to all citizens of the nation without regard for gender, ethnicity, country of origin, or sexual orientation.

I want to personally recognize the achievement of this group of people at Seattle Center, and the other people taking the Pledge of Allegiance this national holiday in culmination of their quest to become citizens of the United States of America as the modern variation of a path taken by members of my own family from Russia, Germany, Poland, and Hungary. IBA, as the region’s oldest mergers & acquisitions firm, has the privilege of working directly on a regular basis with individuals of diverse backgrounds who recognize the limitless opportunity that exists in America for entrepreneurs. Many of the entrepreneurs who complete transactions with our firm are not originally from this country, but are individuals that migrated here to achieve their potential in business, wealth creation, and personally.

These individuals recognize & appreciate the opportunities that exist for entrepreneurs in America. I encourage everyone to take a moment this 4th of July holiday to appreciate all that is good about our country and consider the following words from Ronald Reagan’s farewell address to the nation:
I’ve spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don’t know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace; a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity. And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here. That’s how I saw it, and see it still.
IBA, the Pacific Northwest’s premier business brokerage firm since 1975, is available as an information resource to the media, business brokerage, and mergers & acquisitions community on subjects relevant to the purchase & sale of privately held companies and family owned businesses. IBA is recognized as one of the best business brokerage firms in the nation in terms of successfully negotiating transactions that are “win-win” in an environment of full disclosure between the parties.