(Undated) -- A new historical marker honoring the state's first secretary of the Department of Environmental Resources will be dedicated later today. The late Maurice Goddard served in the cabinets of six governors and is considered to be the godfather of Pennsylvania's park system. He had hoped to create a state park within 25 miles of every Pennsylvania resident. In the WITF documentary, "The Life of Maurice Goddard," former Governor George Leader praised Goddard's dedication. "He had the vision to look ahead, to dream ahead, and see where this commonwealth was going to go," he said. "Maybe it was the fact that his father was a minister and he learned about eternal values and compassion and love and understanding. But, he certainly had it in his mind and in his heart and in his soul." The historical marker honoring the man known as the champion of the state's natural resources will be dedicated at 12:30 p.m. today at Willow Park in Camp Hill, Cumberland County. Goddard died in 1995 at the age of 83.