NATCHEZ — As part of the 20th anniversary celebration of Natchez National Historical Park, the park will host a visit this week by Art Frederick, the deputy regional director of the Southeast Region of the National Park Service. He will be touring Natchez and visiting park sites.

Frederick has served as deputy regional director in the Atlanta office for the past two years. He is a Florida native with many years of NPS experience. He began his career in law enforcement at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area before moving to the Blue Ridge Parkway where he became chief ranger.

In 1996, Frederick was selected as deputy superintendent at Martin Luther King Jr., National Historic Site. Four years later he became superintendent of Cumberland Island National Seashore, and three years after that he took charge of the Virgin Islands National Park where he served for three years before moving to Atlanta

The public is invited to attend a meet-and-greet session with Deputy Frederick on Thursday morning, in the theater and lobby of the Natchez Visitor Center. Brief introductory remarks will be followed by refreshments and time for mingling.

“I am very happy to have the opportunity for Art to meet the hard-working staff at Natchez NHP, to see the amazing resources that we have stewardship of, and to meet some of our partners here in Natchez,” said Kathleen Jenkins, the superintendent of Natchez National Historical Park. “I am also looking forward to everyone getting to know some of the dedicated NPS management team from the Southeast Regional Office.”