Since moving to the United States 10 years ago, many people have known Bob Bradshaw as Bob the Brit. But on Friday he earned a new nickname -- Bob the Yank.

Bradshaw, the Mapleton city manager, and his wife, Anne, completed the testing requirement for their U.S. citizenship applications Friday. While they aren't citizens yet -- they must wait to find out when they will be officially sworn in -- Mapleton celebrated as if it were a done deal.

Bob and Anne returned to City Hall to find American flags lining the front of the building and a congratulatory banner hanging above the door.

Friends and colleagues set up a party in the most American of styles: a barbecue.

"We finally feel like we belong here," Bob told the crowd of about two dozen who greeted him and Anne.

Mayor Jim Brady presented the incoming citizens with a U.S. flag that flew above the Capitol in Washington, D.C., courtesy of Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah. He also gave them a certificate granting Bob his new nickname and conferring upon the couple such American rights as wearing cowboy boots to church, replacing tea time with a can of Diet Coke and a handful of cheese puffs, and "speaking American" instead of the queen's English.

After a decade in the United States, Bob and Anne already feel pretty American. Even before moving here permanently they had been here numerous times, visiting friends they met through The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Even after Friday's celebration, they said they didn't feel any different.

"It's not sunk in yet," Bob said.

Bob said they moved to America for a better quality of life and to be closer to their four children. All four attended Brigham Young University and still live in the United States after marrying Americans. The Bradshaws have 11 American grandchildren, with a 12th on the way.

"We knew we wanted to live here for the rest of our lives," Anne said. "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."

The citizenship test was not as difficult for the Bradshaws as it is for some. Being from Britain, the English proficiency section was obviously a breeze. The section on American government posed no challenge to Bob since he works in government and taught courses on it at BYU.

Anne said she studied hard to learn U.S. history, such as the original 13 states. She also had to get used to words that mean different things in Britain and America. For example, in British English, the word constitution typically means health.

Brady said he helped organize the party, in part, because Bob gets little recognition for the job he does, and described him as Mapleton's CEO. Bob has served as city manager there since 2003.

"Being the frontman for the city for most of what goes on, he hears a lot of the citizens' complaints, he fields a lot of concerns, but he doesn't get a lot of recognition. I thought it was appropriate, both to embarrass him a little but also to say thanks for what he's doing," Brady said.

Bob the Brit may have become Bob the Yank, but that likely doesn't mean he and his American-born cohorts will stop having fun at each other's expense. Brady said people often joke with Bob about referring to soccer as football or his British pronunciations of words such as schedule. The humor is good-natured and Bob can dish it out as well as he takes it.

"He'll remind us that we are the rebels, that sooner or later this experiment in America will end and we'll go back to being British," Brady said. "He's going to have to quit saying that."

Jeremy Duda can be reached at 344-2561 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it