F
all is the perfect time to enjoy a
local park. Residents and friends
of Sewickley can especially look
forward to visiting local gem
Mary Roberts Rinehart Park for a
beautiful and relaxing atmosphere right in
their backyard.
The park was incorporated as a PA not-
for-profit organization in 2006, and became
an IRS Section 501(c)(3) charitable
entity in early 2007. William Boswell and
Natasha Green were the co-founders, but
many people and groups have contributed
over the years. “The Sewickley Valley
Community Fund has been most generous,
providing matching grants for our storage
shed and the barrier fence along Ohio River
Boulevard,” says Boswell. “This has been
and is a labor of love, and wouldn’t exist
without our volunteers.”
Green, 75, formerly had a residence
adjacent to the park, but now lives close by
in Edgeworth. “We developed this park to
turn an overgrown wooded lot, ignored for
generations, into a naturalized Western PA
environment,” she explains.
The property itself was provided by the
Quaker Valley School District, as it was
unable to use it. “We were able to bring
about a tremendous win-win by creating a
resource they couldn’t develop themselves,
and one which is perfectly suited for our
communities’ broader educational needs,”
says Boswell, “all with the sweat equity
of numerous volunteers and financial
and in-kind donations from committed
parties, saving taxpayer dollars. We must
acknowledge the diligent support of
soon-to-retire Deputy Superintendent Joe
Marrone, who’s been an outstanding liaison
between us and the school district.”
The group decided to name the park after
the famous mystery writer Mary Roberts
Rinehart, who once owned the property.
“Her Victorian ‘mansion’ was adjacent to
what is now the park,” adds Green. “She
was the Agatha Christie of the early 20th
century and, as far as we know, this park is
the only memorial to her.”
The creation process for the park was
truly “creative,” since the group had no
original funding and needed to depend on
the generous support of local residents and
organizations. “The help was heartwarming,
beginning with the entrance road being
graded free and graveled,” notes Green.
The park encompasses approximately
four acres adjoining Osborne Elementary
School on Beaver Road. Its entrance is
marked with a sign designed by local artist
George Gaadt that was a gift and paid for
with donated funds.
The park is available primarily to
residents of the Quaker Valley School
District, but is effectively open to all—pets
included, if leashed. The board hosts several
events throughout the year, including
Fairy House Building in the spring,
where children use naturalized materials
for construction and are guided with
information about fairies from a volunteer
“fairy.” In the fall, a pumpkin painting event
is hosted—complete with a storyteller and
treats at the fire pit. The park’s annual events
are free and open to all.
In addition, members of the board have
planted a huge pollinator garden along the
upper trail to attract bees and butterflies—
using it as an educational tool for the
schoolchildren and any visitors. There
are upper and lower walking trails, which
are well-maintained. The park also has an
overlook at the end of the upper trail with a
beautiful view of the Ohio River.
There are seating areas throughout the
park, along with a gazebo built by Explorer
Scouts. Local resident Eston Owens
constructed a stone amphitheater and all of
the other dry-set stonework at the overlook
and the fire pit by hand. Stone benches were
donated as memorials, and many residents
choose to have memorial services and
weddings in the park.
Sweetwater Center for the Arts has held
classes in the park and continues to do so—
teaching students to sketch and experience
natural beauty. Quaker Valley teachers use
the park to teach about environmental
issues, and the amphitheater is sometimes
used as an outdoor classroom.
“Currently, we’re working to have
occasional music events in the park,”
adds Green. “What the park offers the
community goes beyond events—it’s a
place of magic and tranquility.”
Many volunteers come together to
keep the park beautiful and available to
all, including students from Sewickley
Academy, who spread the wood chips
annually in the spring as a service project.
Local garden clubs contribute with planting
in the pollinator garden, and students
from the Bidwell Center use the park as
a horticultural training ground—raising,
planting and cutting trees.
The board receives personal contributions
and matching grants, and Glen Osborne
Borough gives the park an annual grant.
“Our operating budget is about $15,000
per year—all of it donated,” explains Green.
“The Commonwealth gave us a grant 10
years ago, and we’ve applied for another
grant this year to install a decorative fence
along the park’s northern boundary at
Beaver Road.”
The board’s future plans for the park are
to maintain and improve what they have
created. “Keeping a project going is no small
feat, and our main challenge is to create only
as much as we can maintain,” says Green.
“This park has been—from the onset—a
perfect example of how a community
working together can create a thing of
beauty.”
For more information, visit
mrrnaturepark.com. ■
PARK BOARD MEMBERS
Mayor Emeritus Bill Boswell of
Glen Osborne, President
Mayor Barbara Carrier of Glen Osborne,
Treasurer
Lynn Popovitch, Secretary
Mayor Brian Jeffe of Sewickley
Councilwoman Mary Scalercio of
Glen Osborne
Natasha Green
Jim Edson
Janel Bauer Morrison
Kate Crouch, Landscape Committee Chair
SEWICKLEY
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FALL 2019
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