Over a dozen vendors and a handful of speakers gathered at Bakersfield college's renegade event center. Yet, this event wasn't just for anyone. It catered to only local veterans and is the first of its kind.
"There's a period of time after they leave their service that they're not necessarily connected with benefits or resources, they're not connected to the veteran community and we really wanted to fill in that gap,” said Jenny Frank, Director of Veteran Services and Programs at Bakersfield College.
Frank says the Kern County Veteran's Opportunity Event has been an idea years in the making.
Becoming a reality on Friday, Frank says around 18 vendors and 9 speakers were at the event, providing a multitude of resources.
Aside from this, frank says this was also an opportunity for local veterans to reconnect with each other, something Josh Connor is truly grateful for.
"When I got out in 2006 it wasn't like this. You kind of just got out and you didn't know where to go there was no where to go, you could go to the VA's office and that was about it,” said Conner. “Now, we have so many organizations that help in so many different ways."
Conner says he didn't just attend the event as a guest, but as a vendor as well.
Working with the non-profit Operation Second Chance, he was here offering retreats for veterans and their families, financial assistance, and hosts local events to let more veterans connect with each other.
Marine veteran Jennifer Lopez says upon hearing the event through some friends, she had an idea in mind of the event but never expected the reality.
"I was expecting hat makers and t-shirt people not the resources that are actually going to benefit myself and others out there when it comes to looking for colleges or going back to college or anything to help us with our disability ratings,” said Lopez.
With this event being the first of its kind for Bakersfield college, the plan is to make it an annual event. Taking feedback from attendees to then implicate it for next year.
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