Obama Picks Sen. Salazar (D-Co) for Interior Secretary

n November 2004, Coloradans elected Ken Salazar to serve as Colorado's thirty-fifth United States Senator.

A fifth generation Coloradan, Senator Salazar's life reflects the American dream. His family settled in the American West before the United States was a country. After helping found the city of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1598, they planted roots in Colorado's San Luis Valley, where they have farmed and ranched the same land for five generations.

Senator Salazar's parents served in World War II - his mother in the War Department in Washington D.C. and his father as a staff sergeant in the United States Army. After the war, they returned to the San Luis Valley to farm, ranch, and raise a family.

On a remote ranch without electricity or telephone, Senator Salazar's parents taught their eight children the values of hard work, family, and faith. Thanks to their lessons, Senator Salazar and his seven brothers and sisters all became first generation college graduates.