The memorial was designed by John Cohrs. It is a circular plaza, with two paths. The outer path is level while the inner path ascends to a second level. In the center is a fountain, with both granite and glass spiraling upward to a point. The inscription on the granite reads "To honor all those who served." At night, lights in the fountain reflect off of the glass in rotating colors of red, white, and blue. The fountain is also used to cover the noise of the busy Truxtun Avenue, which is directly adjacent. Along the outer path of the memorial are nine flags. They are:
United States of America,
State of California,
Army,
Navy,
Air Force,
Marines,
Coast Guard,
Merchant Marines, and
POW/MIA. In between the flag poles will be the wall of valor (a part of phase II). It list the names of those people who were killed or missing in action during wartime. The names are etched in glass panels, and painted in gold for visibility. The Kern Veterans Memorial Foundation describes the symbolic design of the memorial as: The memorial also contains a
kiosk, which allows a person to search for the names of a veteran. It contains information about the veterans: years of service, awards received, and brief biographical description. This unique onsite database allows someone to visualize the people who served in our armed forces. During the planning of the memorial, the
Department of Veterans Affairs listed about 350 Kern County veterans who were killed or missing in action. With the work of citizens, especially the Achieve class at
Bakersfield High School, an additional 657 veterans were discovered for a total of approximately 1007. That class also researched the 1007 veterans for information used in the kiosk. ==Future==