Lake Compounce appoints Doug Hemphill as General Manager

By | May 16, 2023

BRISTOL, Conn. — Lake Compounce, the official park of family fun and America’s First Amusement Park today announced the appointment of Doug Hemphill as General Manager effective immediately. Hemphill is a seasoned industry professional that brings more than 40 years of amusement industry experience to the park.

Lake Compounce is owned and operated by Palace Entertainment, a leading leisure park operator with 25 major entertainment and educational venues across the United States and Australia. The addition of Hemphill to the Palace Entertainment team showcases the organization’s continued commitment to strategically growing its leadership team by recruiting top industry talent. This announcement comes shortly after the company appointed Bonnie Sherman Weber, a Six Flags industry veteran, as Chief Operating Officer.

“I am thrilled to join the team at America’s First Amusement Park,” said General Manager Doug Hemphill. “The park has so much to be proud of as it ramps up for its 177th season. I am looking forward to leading the park through a fantastic next chapter, beginning this season, as we reintroduce live concerts on a new state-of-the-art floating stage and continue to elevate our guest experience, retail and food and beverage operations.”

Hemphill most recently served as Corporate Vice President of Food and Beverage with SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment and as Corporate Senior Director of Food & Beverage Operations with Six Flags. Throughout his 15 years with Six Flags, Hemphill was instrumental in delivering year-over-year record performance, overseeing the company’s food and beverage operation, leading the charge across multiple new capital projects and implementing strategies to elevate the guest experience across all 27 Six Flags properties.

“We are pleased to welcome Doug to our growing Palace Entertainment team,” said Group Manager of Theme Parks Mark Pauls. “We know that through Doug’s leadership and invaluable experience, he will be undeniably successful in leading Lake Compounce to success and growth for many years to come.”

Through the appointment of Doug, Palace Entertainment has added yet another key industry executive to its portfolio of parks.