“The Spirit of Yosemite,” a 22-minute award-winning film which showcases the beauty of each season in the magnificent national park, will be presented Sunday, Sept. 20, at 3 p.m. in the West Side Theatre.

Admission is free.

The program is sponsored by the Yosemite Association, the Yosemite Fund, the West Side Theatre Foundation and Mattos Newspapers.

Presenting the program will be Newman resident Bob McConnell, who spends two months each summer in Yosemite as a volunteer for the Yosemite Association.

The Spirit of Yosemite shows the history and beauty of Yosemite, beginning with the story of the Native Americans who first lived in the park. It goes on to tell of Galen Clark, the first guardian of Yosemite, and John Muir, a great explorer of the Yosemite high country.

The film brings Yosemite’s spectacular scenery to life, from the snows of winter to the waterfalls of spring.

It depicts the grandeur of the giant Sequoias, the mighty waterfalls at their fullest, wildlife and flowers, and the mighty mountain peaks of the park, which is visited by more than three and a half million people each year.

In addition to the Yosemite film, there will be a 15-minute introduction to a Ken Burns’ documentery. Burns has created several series for the Public Broadcasting Service, with topics ranging from baseball to American jazz to the Civil War.

His next series is entitled “America’s Best Idea – Our National Park System,” and will be shown on the Public Broadcasting Service. The series begins Sept. 27 and continues through Oct. 2. Two-hour segments are shown at 8 and 10 p.m. each night.

The documentary traces the early beginnings of the national park system. It begins in 1864, when President Lincoln set aside the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of giant Sequoias to preserve those areas. That led to the designation of Yellowstone as the first national park in the world eight years later.

The story is one of people, their love of the land and the preservation of America’s most spectacular places as national parks.

McConnell’s volunteerism at Yosemite reflects the same values, serving to protect, preserve and provide opportunities for all people to enjoy the parks.

Burns shot the first footage for the documentary in 2003. His images of the great Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls will be included in the opening sequence.

Each episode will cover phases of the park development. Though viewers will see scenes from many parks rather than a tour of each, the film is an effort to show that the national park system truly was America’s best idea.

One of the narrators will be Lee Stetson, who portrays John Muir four times each week at nightly performances in the valley visitor center theatre.

Well-known Yosemite ranger Sheldon Johnson will be seen and heard in various episodes of the series.

Information regarding both the Yosemite Association and the Yosemite Fund will be handed out along with souvenir cards that depict well-known spots in Yosemite.

An outline of Burn’s upcoming documentary series will also be handed out.