DCNR Appoints New Manager at Gifford Pinchot State Park

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources today named Bob Deffner as manager of Gifford Pinchot State Park, York County. He is former manager of the R.B. Winter State Park Complex in Union County.

"Bob brings a solid administrative background to his latest state park assignment, and his enthusiasm and public relations skills will only improve the visitor experience at Gifford Pinchot," said Bureau of State Parks Director John Norbeck.

The 2,338-acre Gifford Pinchot State Park offers visitors a wide selection of recreational opportunities throughout the year, including camping, swimming, boating, hiking and hunting. Located along Route 177 between Rossville and Lewisberry in northern York County, the park is a combination of former farm fields and wooded hillsides surrounding the 340-acre Pinchot Lake.

With 339 campsites at the southern end of the lake, Gifford Pinchot features one of the state park system's largest campgrounds. Visitation tops 505,000 each year.

"With the park an easy drive from Harrisburg and York, visitors value this retreat as a place to connect with nature and enjoy the healthy benefits of so many recreational activities," Deffner said. "Because hiking and camping are very popular activities at Gifford Pinchot, I plan on improving the park's trail system and continuing to upgrade the campground to make it more user-friendly."

Deffner began his Bureau of State Parks career as a park ranger, working from 1980 to 1983 at Parker Dam State Park, Clearfield County. He managed a Millvale hardware store from 1983 to 1990 before returning to the bureau as an environmental education specialist at Jennings Environmental Education Center, Butler County, and then manager of Mt. Pisgah State Park, Bradford County. Since 1999, he managed the R.B. Winter State Park in Union County and three smaller satellite parks: Sand Bridge, also in Union County; Ravensburg, Clinton County; and McCalls Dam, Centre County.  

A native of Pittsburgh, Deffner, 53, received an associate's degree in wildlife management from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor's degree in wildlife management from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania.

For more information on Gifford Pinchot and Pennsylvania's other 116 state parks visit www.dcnr.state.pa.us (select State Parks).

Media contact: Terry Brady, 717-772-9101

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

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