The Bakersfield College Veterans Club hosted its third annual Vet Fest on Nov. 5 in order to commemorate those who served, honor those who are serving, as well as to provide resources for veterans and other students on campus.

The event took place in front of Student Services from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. It started and ended with the boom of a cannon.

Everyone was asked to rise for the presentation of colors by the Associated Veterans of Kern County Honor Guard, and BC Chamber singer Caley Mayhall sang the national anthem at the start of the event.

There were a variety of vendors and information booths. Representatives from the U.S. Army and the U.S. Navy were present in the event to recruit as well as to provide information. The Bakersfield Vet Center, Wounded Heroes Fund, and the California Veterans Foundation were three of the many veteran services programs at the event. Representatives from University of LaVerne and Grand Canyon University were also present.

Students were encouraged to visit vendors and information booths. Small forms were given to students to have signed off from anyone working each individual booth, and students who had every space filled were given free lunch in the area from 11:30 p.m. to 1 p.m.

The BC Veterans Club used this as an initiative to get students more involved.

Veterans Club Secretary and U.S. Army veteran Gwendolyn Turner said, “The veteran’s club is open to anyone at BC, not just veterans. We strive to further education and help other vets who don’t know what’s available for them and the problems they might have healthwise. As a group we get together and help the community too.”

English major and US Navy veteran Andrew Perales, displayed some of his artwork to donate and to raise some extra money for the club.

“This is the one I was doing sort of as a montage to different eras of war. There’s a lot of detail, it’s not done yet though. When it is done I’m going to donate to the Wounded Heroes fund,” Perales said about one of his art pieces. He added that he was not able to finish the piece in time for Vet Fest because of midterms.

Perales also had charcoal sketches of Vietnam era photographs for sale.

“They show the other sides of war. The picture that you see, it’s a 19-year-old kid, but he looks like he’s 40. He was just so exhausted from the war,” Perales said about one of his sketches.

“It’s a hobby that I do. Since I was a little kid I drew, as I became an adult and became a little more serious, I started giving them away as gifts. People finally convinced me to start selling. I enjoy the feedback that people give me,” Perales added.

Perales also gave a statement about the event. He stated, “Not only do we find veterans that just came out of the service. We try to find other veterans, older veterans that think they can’t go back to school because of their age and because they think they can’t use their GI Bill. We try to tell them about FAFSA and things like that so they know. We try to educate them about what’s out there.”

According to Turner, Vet Fest 2015 had a larger turnout than that of 2014, but Veterans Club president and U.S. Army veteran Benjamin Lindquist said that he hopes next year’s Vet Fest will turn out even stronger. He emphasized student involvement, stating that the event is held not only for veterans, but for BC students. Lindquist is planning on adding more vendors, as well as a bounce house and a rock-climbing wall for Vet Fest 2016.