Robyn and Randy Burris, two of Eufaula’s leading citizens who are shining examples of what it means to be community spirited, will be leaving in January for Sheridan, Ark., just south of Little Rock.

“Our younger daughter, Emily, lives in Little Rock. Our older daughter, Chelsea, lives in Germany, so we weren’t going to be moving there!,” Robyn said.

The Burrises have been prominent in Eufaula for 32 years, especially with Friends of the Eufaula Memorial Library.

They were the driving forces behind the StoryWalk, an attraction along Lakeside Drive in the cove consisting of a series of posts, each post a page from a children’s book.

They changed the story monthly.

Though they have been dedicated to the community, they are not native.

Randy was born and raised in Norman, then after graduating from Oklahoma State he took the job of Lincoln County 4-H Agent in Chandler. Robyn was born in Shawnee, raised in Meeker and also graduated from Oklahoma State. They lived in Chandler when they were first married.

Randy was assigned to the McIntosh County Extension office as the Agriculture Agent/Educator in 1992.

“He commuted from Chandler for two years before we finally made the move to Eufaula. We moved here in January and are moving away in January,” Robyn said.

Randy retired from OSU Extension in 2013.

“He was involved with Friends of the Library in the early 2000s. He was first on the Library Board after being approached by Robert Lee Simpson to become a member. Then Margaret Collins and John Harkey asked Randy to be President of the Friends of the Library. He held that position for about two years. Randy also served on the City of Eufaula Planning and Zoning board. He was instrumental in starting the Inspiration Garden, which started as a vegetable garden to serve underprivileged folk,” Robyn said.

Robyn started attending Friends of the Eufaula Memorial Library after she retired from Eufaula Public School in 2016.

“Margaret Collins was Friends president at that time and asked me to be in charge of Membership. I then moved to Vice-President, then to Treasurer when the need arose,” she said.

In around 2020, Robyn saw that Checotah had a StoryWalk in their park. So, she started looking into how to start a StoryWalk.

Then Library Manager Brittany Moore had been approached by Muscogee Nation Health groups who were also interested in sponsoring a Story-Walk in Eufaula.

So, the location was chosen on the walking trail at Eufaula cove and the StoryWalk was completed in 2021.

Since then, Randy and Robyn have changed the book almost every month.

“This involves ordering two used children’s books (or sometimes using one book discarded from the library), cutting the books apart and laminating them. Then opening each case and placing the pages in the correct order. It never fails that someone, adult or child, will be reading the book when they are out there working. Many walk by and say how much they enjoy the stories,” Robyn said.

Another project that Robyn headed for the Friends was bringing the Veterans bricks back to the library.

“They had been in storage for several years due to becoming a tripping hazard on the sidewalk. Several librarians had worked on finding a safe place to put the bricks,” Robyn said.

After Moore left the library, Robyn was determined that this project would be completed.

So, the location outside the front door of the library was chosen.

“Lenore Bechtel, a Friends member, knew someone who could pour cement in the area, so the Friends paid for this part of the project,” Robyn said.

City of Eufaula workers got the bricks out of storage and Robyn organized and placed each brick.

The bricks honor those who died in service of our country from WW1, WW2, Korean War, Vietnam War and Operation Enduring Freedom who were from McIntosh County.

“This is why our library is the Eufaula Memorial Library. The local VFW provided the plaques with names of the wars that were attached to bricks and the Friends purchased two new engraved bricks to honor the recently fallen soldiers,” she said.

Robyn wrote the story of the memorial bricks and sent it to the FOLIO group (Friends of Libraries in Oklahoma) to be published in their newsletter.

The publisher wrote back and told Robyn that she should submit it to the group for the John Harkey Best Friends award which is presented each year to a library from a small community.

So, Robyn submitted the application and in 2024 Eufaula Friends of Library won the John Harkey Best Friends Award! This came with a plaque and a $500 check.

Robyn has also served on the board of the Eastern Oklahoma Library System for two years representing the city of Eufaula.

Robyn and Randy have been very involved in the Eufaula United Methodist church since moving here in 1994.

“It is hard to leave with so much history in the town of Eufaula, but we feel like this will be a new adventure for us,” Robyn said.

She spent about 30 years in Lincoln County, about 30 years in Eufaula.

“Now we will see what the next 30 years bring in Arkansas!”