For the first time in five years, the crown jewel of Vicksburg has a new leader.

Bill Justice officially started his at least four-month stint with Vicksburg National Military Park Monday after serving as superintendent of the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site. He replaces Mike Madell, who served the park for a little over five years and left Friday to become deputy superintendent of Acadia National Park in Maine.

Justice has a lot of accomplishments to build from during his stay at VNMP.

Under Madell’s tenure, the park grew its quality and quantity of programing and community outreach while setting the foundation for the physical expansion of the park. Yet, he is humble about his accomplishments.

“I certainly had a role and I did what I could but in every case it was truly a team effort. And by that I don’t only mean the staff, who are obviously great, but also the community. That’s one thing that’s really unique about Vicksburg and I hope folks realize the connection between the park and the community. It’s worth its weight in gold,” Madell said.

Madell said one of the things he wished he could have accomplished was planning for the eventual expansion of the park.

In December, President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act, part of which gave the National Park Service authorization to add battlefield land at Champion Hill, Port Gibson and Raymond. The park’s management team, now led by Justice, will soon begin working with the Southeast Regional Office in Atlanta to start the planning process for acquiring and developing more than 11,000 acres.

And he deserves the public’s help and support just as much as Madell did. He’s certainly shown that he can gain support in Mississippi. Justice worked at Natchez National Historical Park from 1995 until 2001 — a crucial time for development of the park.

“There was a lot of planning work and development that needed to happen that could have not happened without a lot of community involvement and support,” Justice said.

Give Justice your support in anyway you can. Visit the park, give him a call, or just say hello when you see him in public. He’s working for the interests of Vicksburg and Warren County.

Vicksburg National Military Park brings more people to Warren County than anything else. People from all around the world flock to stand on the historic battlefield, which sometimes our residents take for granted. It’s everyone’s park and Vicksburg’s crown jewel. It’s a new day at VNMP, and a time for renewed interest.