[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 83 (Friday, May 28, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E978-E979]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBUTE TO THE BAKERSFIELD NATIONAL CEMETERY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. KEVIN McCARTHY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 27, 2010

  Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 
Bakersfield National Cemetery located in Kern County, California. The 
Bakersfield National Cemetery opened in July of last year and we will 
all be honoring veterans at the cemetery's first Memorial Day

[[Page E979]]

this weekend. This cemetery will serve as a final resting place for our 
veterans and their family members for many years to come.
  The Bakersfield National Cemetery covers more than five hundred acres 
and includes full-casket gravesites, pre-placed crypts, in-ground 
cremation sites and columbarium niches. Additionally, the grounds will 
include a public information center, a maintenance complex, a flag 
assembly area, a memorial walkway, a committal service shelter, as well 
as interment areas, plus irrigation and support facilities that will 
keep the grounds pristine as the final resting place of many of our 
heroes from the Central Valley of California who have served and 
sacrificed for our country.
  It is of the utmost importance that the brave men and women who keep 
us safe be honored. This cemetery provides solace to the families of 
service personnel; for others, it will serve as a reminder of the 
sacrifice that patriots have made, and will continue to make, on behalf 
of our nation.
  The Bakersfield National Cemetery is a monument not only to the 
sacrifice of our local veterans, but also to Kern County's unending 
commitment to those who serve, and the cause of freedom for all. The 
Bakersfield National Cemetery is a small token of appreciation for our 
men and women in uniform who protect the freedoms that we enjoy today, 
and I am honored today to recognize its first Memorial Day ceremony.

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