For County Employee, Doing the Right Thing Is Only Natural

 Senior Park Ranger Marc Pumpkinthief manages 78-acre Otay Lakes County Park in eastern Chula Vista.

Marc Pumpkinthief gets to know County park visitors, especially the regulars.

So when a frequent visitor to Sweetwater Regional Park, where the senior park ranger was based, became ill a few years ago, Pumpkinthief noticed. The man’s face seemed a little pale and he complained of dizziness.

A former EMT for the National Park Service, Pumpkinthief’s instincts told him it was serious. The man resisted help, but Pumpkinthief insisted and called 911.

It turned out the man had a severe viral infection near his heart. He was going into shock.

After a stint in the hospital and successful recovery, the man returned to the park to thank Pumpkinthief. He nominated Pumpkinthief for a customer service hero award through the County’s Serving Everyone with Excellence program. It was one of three customer service awards--two Superhero awards and one Lifetime Achievement honor--Pumpkinthief has won since the program began in 2008.

Now the senior park ranger at Otay Lakes County Park, Pumpkinthief is one of a few employees who will be spotlighted this month, National Ethics Awareness Month, as part of a series of features on employees living the County’s core values of integrity, responsible stewardship and commitment to excellence every day. The newly renamed Office of Ethics and Compliance created a Statement of Values that spells them out.

Spend some time with Pumpkinthief and it quickly becomes clear that he brings a surge of enthusiasm, creativity and passion to his work. Underlying that is an eye for detail and a deep commitment to integrity.

“I know he loves being a park ranger,” said Amy Harbert, an Operations Chief with the Department of Parks and Recreation. “He loves what he does and if you have a passion for what you’re doing, it comes through.” 

Pumpkinthief’s goal is to make parks welcoming, safe spaces for visitors. He said he wants them to feel comfortable and be able to relax, exercise and connect with nature.

“We want them to feel better leaving than when they got here,” he said. “If people aren’t walking away either smiling or happy, I’m not satisfied.”

His strategy seems to be working. At Otay Lakes, traffic and park revenue have jumped recently. The number of parking permits sold in the past year doubled, he said.

His recipe for success has been simple. He just tries to do the right thing.

“My reputation is really all I have,” Pumpkinthief said. “People who know me know there’s a trust they have with me.”

Pumpkinthief more or less stumbled onto this career path. As an undergraduate student at San Diego State, he saw a flyer on the wall seeking summer volunteers for the National Park Service. He signed up and went off to Utah to work at Natural Bridges National Monument. He knew on his first day of training that he wanted to be a ranger.

“I realized I want to be the connection between people and nature,” he said.

Pumpkinthief said he had been interested in the natural world since he was a kid. He grew up in Northern California playing outside and building teepees. He changed his last name to honor part of his Osage Indian heritage.

After graduating from SDSU, he became a National Park Service ranger and spent time working in Yosemite and Zion national parks and Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico.

Pumpkinthief started at the County in 2007 and spent four years as a ranger at Sweetwater Regional Park in Bonita before transferring to Otay Lakes. There, in eastern Chula Vista, he manages the 78-acre park, along with two other paid employees and eight volunteers.  

Walking around the park one recent morning, Pumpkinthief excitedly explained all the new projects he’s overseen since arriving a year and a half ago.

One of the first things he did was buy chairs for the park headquarters’ front porch.

It was a small, but symbolic step. He and park maintenance worker Robert Major wanted visitors to feel more comfortable stopping in to ask questions or just taking a breather under the shade of the historic adobe.

Nearby, Pumpkinthief and his staff are planting a massive rose garden around a pavilion which he hopes will one day be a destination for rose lovers and the site of many weddings. He has found ways to save the County money in the process. They built planter boxes from scratch, rather than buying them, saving an estimated $3,000.

He also saved money by relying on volunteers to build a new interactive composting exhibit. A group of college students donated their time to construct the compost demonstration garden last year. An area resident also donates horse manure, which is broken down in the garden and turned into soil for the rest of the park, saving another $1,500 in the past year.

Volunteers have spruced up furniture in the park’s headquarters and plan to hold a cleanup event next month with the nonprofit I Love a Clean San Diego and the cities of Chula Vista and San Diego.

“I never turn down volunteer help,” he said.

Pumpkinthief has taken a special interest in increasing disability access. An onsite multi-sensory trail  allows sight and hearing impaired people and those in wheelchairs to stroll along a paved pathway, smelling and touching plants specially chosen for their interesting textures (pencil plant, euphorbia) and aromas (rosemary, pepper tree). 

His favorite part of the job is the challenge of getting visitors to comply with rules but also leave happier than when they arrived.

“It’s all in the delivery,” he said. “I don’t form opinions until I’ve spoken with them and heard what they have to say.”

Harbert praised Pumpkinthief for seeking feedback from park visitors, and being open to both critiques and compliments. He’s quick to volunteer for pilot projects or programs, too.

“He’s always looking for ways to improve the customer experience and to make it better,” she said.

As he’s matured in his role as a ranger over the years, Pumpkinthief said he’s become more focused on educating people and learning from them too.

“Everyone’s family when they’re here,” he said. “Everyone’s a friend. Parks are a community effort. It’s not just one person.”