The Frick Environmental Center (FEC) has a Lending Library that includes assistive resources, sensory bags and exploration backpacks to enhance your experience along the Sensory Nature Trail and throughout Frick Park.
Lending Library items and assistive resources are available during the FEC’s operating hours of 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM daily:
- Standard binoculars, digital binoculars and monoculars
- iPad and Amazon Fire Tablets with hand straps and neck straps (for accessing QR codes along the Sensory Nature Trail and using nature exploration apps)
- Sensory bags with assorted fidgets
- Rollz Rollators
- Forest, Meadow, Stream, Seasonal, and Forest Bathing Exploration backpacks
- Enchroma glasses for alleviating red-green color blindness (adult, youth and fit-over models)
- Umbrellas
The Lending Library is free for all park visitors for day use. Please complete the Lending Library Form to become an eligible borrower.
Lending Library items are first come, first serve. You are welcome to call in advance of your visit to confirm that your desired item is available.
Please note: We are still adding items to the Lending Library. Some items listed may not yet be available.
To speak with someone about accommodations and accessibility when visiting the FEC and the Outdoor Discovery Space and Sensory Nature Trail, please contact us at 412.586.4576.
Wyatt's Story The Lending Library is dedicated in memory of Wyatt Northrop, who cherished his visits and exploration of Frick Park.
"Gentle breezes, warm sunshine, birdsong, and lush green foliage against bright blue skies—these are the simplest of pleasures that can be enjoyed in our parks. These were also the parts Wyatt loved the most. Wyatt wasn’t able to run the Riverview Trail or throw a rock into Falls Ravine. He needed assistance for all of life’s activities, but that never stopped him from enjoying what Frick Park had to offer.
Our family of five spent many hours in Frick and other local parks. When Wyatt was young, the park provided a much-needed contrast and break from his intense regimen of medical care. We hiked with him in a front pack, a backpack, and sometimes even in his running stroller—not recommended for big roots and steep bike trails (lessons were learned!). Our little adventurer was up for anything. As he outgrew being carried, we pulled Wyatt in his bike trailer along the Tranquil Trail and pushed him up the big hills near Blue Slide in his off-road wheelchair. Fast speeds and big bumps were always his favorite, and we happily indulged him.
Being outdoors and active together in our local park gave our family a sense of normalcy we didn’t always feel elsewhere. Amusement parks were too loud and jarring for Wyatt. Museums often required more interaction than he could manage on his own. But the park offered a sensory experience that brought us all into Wyatt’s world.
Since we lost Wyatt, many people have shared with us that time spent with him was a time when they truly experienced what it meant to be present—to slow down, to notice the subtleties, the beauty, and the small but meaningful joys of life. This is his legacy. Wyatt taught us all to feel, hear, and see the quiet serenity and significance of a day at the park." - Leah and Ben Northrop, Wyatt's Loving Parents