Lori Dickinson Black recalls loving bluebirds from the time she was a little girl watching The Wizard of Oz and singing along with Judy Garland, “Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly.” In 2015, on the saddest day of her life, she saw a bluebird for the first time in many years, and it brought her hope that life would bring her joy again. After that fateful moment, Lori began to see bluebirds more often.
Today, Lori Dickinson Black and Robert Black are helping to transform historic downtown Edmond with beautiful businesses where community can thrive; in spaces where people can meet for coffee, good food and books. They currently own three businesses in Edmond: Evoke, a coffee café with a delicious brunch and lunch menu; Twisted Tree Bakery, which serves up European-style baked breads and pastries; and Bluebird Books, a beautiful, comfortable space filled with handpicked reads from Lori. Together, Lori and Robert lovingly refer to these businesses as their “holy trinity” on Broadway.
In the summer of 2015, both Lori and Robert tragically lost spouses. After months of friendship and supporting each other through grief, they found love again in one another. In Lori’s words, they became a “modern-day Brady Bunch,” merging kids, pets and homes. At the time, Robert had been a celebrated chef in Oklahoma City for over 20 years. Lori moved to OKC in 2002 with a background in fundraising and development in the nonprofit world. She moved to Edmond to be the Public Schools Foundation Executive Director in 2014, and even though she had lived there less than a year when her first spouse died, Lori speaks to how much Edmond cared for her family in their time of grief and loss. “Edmond became my hometown,” she said.
“Robert and I had never planned to own a restaurant together, but there was something special happening in Edmond and we wanted to be a part of it. We loved the coffee and the space at Evoke and we wanted to incorporate wonderful food. We loved the idea of creating third spaces—an extension of home or community where people can spend time together.”
Although Robert and Lori testify to how stressful it was to keep a small business open during the pandemic, they acknowledge that the experience brought their family closer. They recall cooking in Evoke’s small kitchen together, learning to be coffee baristas, even washing the shop’s dishes with their kids.
During the pandemic, Lori and Robert also saw a shift in how their Edmond neighbors valued local businesses. “There was a stronger connection to the community. People realized that they wanted a face-to-face connection with one another.”
The pandemic also connected them in business with Robert’s sister, Kassie Joslin, an English teacher in Miami, Oklahoma. She began making sourdough bread and selling it at her local farmer’s market. Wanting to be closer together as a family, they created Twisted Tree Bakery in 2022 just a few blocks away from Evoke, with Kassie as partner.
In 2024, when a space became available in downtown Edmond, Lori knew that this neighborhood needed a bookstore as well as coffee and pastries. And the name? Bluebird Books, of course. She wanted their shop to be a place of hope and joy for the entire community, just as bluebirds have always been for her.
Lori looked around the space, smiled, and said, “I love that this is a place where people can come sit and read a book. They don’t have to buy anything. They can bring a child to play. This is a place to meet a friend. This is where we build community. People are carrying so much right now, but this is a place they can come in and be transported.”
May Robert and Lori, together with the community of Edmond, continue creating such places.
