He had to wait more than 80 years for it, but proud World War II veteran Isidore (Teddy) Bertone -- just weeks shy of his 95th birthday -- got the gift of his lifetime Tuesday: He was officially sworn in as a citizen of the United States.

The brief formal ceremony, which took place in the backyard of his daughter’s home in Richmond, moved Bertone -- and family members watching from a social distance -- to tears, as he signed off on official paperwork and raised his right hand in the oath of allegiance to the Constitution and the United States, administered by a representative of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.