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World War II Memorial to be unveiled at Jastro Park

Jastro Park WWII Memorial
Posted at 6:58 AM, Dec 06, 2022
and last updated 2022-12-06 10:00:45-05

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Bakersfield will now have a new way to remember its fallen heroes: a World War II Memorial is set to be unveiled on Saturday, December 10th.

The memorial has been under construction at Jastro Park since June. It features the sculpture of a woman holding a child.

23ABC spoke to the sculptor, and he shared why the decision was made to add it and what it symbolizes.

"Well, if we use a soldier, then it excludes our sailors and if we use a sailor, it's not an airman," explained Benjamin Victor, sculptor of the monument. "He said, what about a mother? A young mother and she's holding her young son in her arms, and she just got the news and a notification from the government that her husband is not going to come back. That could be a sailor, soldier, airman, it could be anyone who served. And it represents all of the names that are behind her on the granite."

The unveiling ceremony is at 10 a.m. and serves as a dedication day to veterans.