Department of Interior Secretary, Ken Salazar, newly appointed National Park Service Director, Jon Jarvis and local area school children recently hiked in Yosemite National Park with their Buddy Bison. In the photo, Secretary Salazar (center) and Jarvis (left) are in Cook's Meadow surrounded by Yosemite school children as they embrace Buddy Bison.

This was Salazar's first official visit to Yosemite National Park and Jarvis' first visit as the Director of the National Park Service.

While in Yosemite, Salazar and Jarvis toured American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects ongoing in the park. The group was also joined by Park Ranger, Shelton Johnson, who presented his award winning Buffalo Soldier program. In his program, Shelton portrays one of the U.S. Army's Buffalo Soldiers, a regiment of African American soldiers created by Congress in 1866, who served largely in the western United States. Ken Burns also featured Shelton prominently in his recent documentary series, The National Parks: Americas Best Idea.