BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The long-awaited World War II Memorial at Jastro Park was dedicated before a crowd of more than 1,000 people on Saturday, December 10th. The monument took five months to build, 77 years after the end of the war.
Dozens of surviving veterans were on hand for the ceremony, as the crowd surrounded the circular platform that contained the six 9-foot-tall panels with the names of nearly 700 local residents who lost their lives during the war. The reverse side of the panels contains the names of all those who served, with room for more.
Local leaders joined board members in thanking the countless organizations who donated time and materials to make this happen, including World War II veteran Walter Grainger, the 97-year-old board member who is credited with drawing the first sketch of the memorial.
"It seems like the older you get, the more emotional you get," said Grainger at the unveiling ceremony. "It's so common for people to say 'thank you for your service' and I'm not sure that they ever hear the response. When you mention the response, the response that you didn't hear is 'you deserve it.' As I look around today, you deserve it. You deserve it."
It took two years worth of planning and fundraising to complete this project.
