Open fires are prohibited throughout the park from midnight to 4 p.m. through April 30 per the 4 p.m. Burning Law. This includes wood and charcoal. Gas is permissible. Campground fires are allowed during the restricted time if a camp host is on duty and signage to that effect is posted in the campground. Failure to observe the 4 p.m. Burning Law can result in a fine. Contact the Park Office for additional information.

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Nancy Heltman

Nancy Heltman

I'm the Visitor Services Director for Virginia State Parks and am responsible for managing the section that includes marketing, our volunteer program, nature and cultural programming (we call that Visitor Experience) as well as customer service and our Customer Service Center. I am also the State Parks technology liaison in our agency, the Department of Conservation and Recreation. Part of my specific customer service duties involve managing our Your Comments Count surveys and responding to questions and complaints. 

I actually started working for State Parks on May 1, 1996 as the Manager for the Customer Service Center, then called the Reservation Center. I have visited all of our parks multiple times and am very familiar with all of our facilities and park features. I can remember when our website had very little information and believe it or not we used to have the symbol ~ in our website address. Can you imagine trying to tell someone over the phone a url with a tilde in it? I worked with our Public Communication Office to improve the information on our website and we still continue to find new ways to provide what our visitors need to know before they arrive.

I manage our social media efforts. I am part of a three person team that manages our Facebook page and I manage our presence on all the other social media sites as well. We started using social media sites at the end of 2008. When I worked in the Customer Service Center I had a lot of contact with our customers and I missed that as I moved to a position with less direct contact. Social media gives me a way to relate to our customers on a deeper level and I enjoy that. 

On the home front, my husband David and I live in Sandston with two dogs and four cats. Nearly all of our vacations are in State Parks. My favorite activity is relaxing on a bench overlooking beautiful scenery. While I know many of our customers like cell service and wifi, I prefer vacationing in our parks without Verizon cell service. I am a bit of a workaholic and you can find me replying to email and on social media sites into the evening and on weekends so for a real vacation, I need to be forcibly unplugged. 


Blogger "Nancy Heltman"Clear results in following blogs.

Spring Burning Restrictions February 15 through April 30

By Nancy HeltmanPosted February 15, 2024
Per state law, open fires are prohibited in all Virginia State Parks from midnight until 4 p.m., February 15 through April 30. Find out about the one exception in this blog.
We obey the law when it comes to burn bans at Virginia State Parks to help prevent wildfires

Celebrate National Public Lands Day with Free Parking September 23

By Nancy HeltmanPosted September 11, 2023
September 23 marks the day we celebrate the land that belongs to us.
Westmoreland State Park, one of the original 6.

Don't Get Lost in the Woods
.... Unless You Want To

By Nancy HeltmanPosted October 08, 2020
New Virginia State Parks maps use GPS technology and the Avenza Map app to help with way-finding.
Enjoy the hike!

When the wind blows - our severe weather policy

By Nancy HeltmanPosted July 31, 2020
Your safety is our utmost priority, it's hurricane season, so let's be prudent and cautious and take the time to explain one of the less pleasant decisions we have to make - when and how to decide to close a park for severe weather.
Downed trees and limbs are of particular threats in a high wind storm

I'd Like To Tell You About Our Friends

By Nancy HeltmanPosted March 23, 2019
Virginia State Parks are fortunate to have a cadre of Friends that provide support and advocate on our behalf.
VAFP President Tim Kennell, presents the Legislator of the Year award to Delegate Kilgore

The Business of Running a Park

By Nancy HeltmanPosted September 20, 2018
You might be surprised to find out what goes into running one of our Virginia State Parks.
Trail work at Hungry Mother State Park

Lucky Fairy Stone Finds

By Nancy HeltmanPosted December 30, 2017
A hiker shares some great fairy stone finds over the Christmas holidays.
Roman Cross shaped fairy stone found by hunting them at Fairy Stone State Park in Virginia

Your next visit to a Virginia State Park could start at the library

By Nancy HeltmanPosted March 18, 2016
Libraries across Virginia now offer backpacks to check out that include free parking and gear to explore a Virginia State Park.
Nature backpacks available to check out at local libraries

My Favorite Accessible Trails at First Landing State Park

By Nancy HeltmanPosted December 28, 2014
The second in a series on how to enjoy Virginia State Parks if you have mobility challenges.
Two of the dune crossovers are fully accessible - from the Chesapeake Bay Center and Campground H

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