HARRISBURG, Pa., June 26, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources today named Heather Bollinger as manager of the Colonel Denning State Park Complex based in Cumberland County. She had been assigned as a park manager in the Bureau of State Parks’ Harrisburg headquarters.

“Assigned to the bureau’s resource management section, Heather demonstrated a keen eye for details and planning,” said DCNR Secretary Richard Allan. “Her skills and professionalism can only enhance the public’s experience at Colonel Denning, which sees more than 63,000 visitors annually.”

Bollinger will oversee Colonel Denning’s 273 acres of woodland and a 3.5-acre lake.

The complex also includes the 104-acre Fowler’s Hollow State Park in Perry County.

Surrounded by Tuscarora State Forest, Colonel Denning and the smaller park offer an abundance of hiking trails, including access to the 105-mile Tuscarora Trail. Doubling Gap Lake at Colonel Denning is popular with early-season trout anglers, and the park’s campgrounds offer 52 tent and trailer sites.

“I am truly excited to be the new park manager at the Colonel Denning State Park Complex,” said Bollinger. “I am looking forward to working with the park staff and helping to connect visitors with nature and recreation. State parks have been an important part of my childhood, and I am proud to be entrusted with managing Pennsylvania’s great natural resources.”

Bollinger, 28, began her Bureau of State Parks career in 2001, working as a summer seasonal clerk at Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Cumberland County. She was named a park manager in the bureau’s Park Operations and Maintenance Division in 2006, and later its Resources Management and Planning Division. A native of Carlisle, Cumberland County, Bollinger holds a bachelor’s degree in geo-environmental studies from Shippensburg State University of Pennsylvania.

Bollinger replaces Ryan Donovan, who was named manager at Cowans Gap State Park, Fulton County.

For more information on Pennsylvania’s 120 state parks, call 1-888-PA-PARKS between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday; or visit www.dcnr.state.pa.us (select “Find a Park”).