The Baskerville family did not intend on all four siblings graduating from the same college. Nonetheless, that’s exactly what happened.

Emma and Eugene Baskerville’s three daughters and son grew up in Lunenburg County and graduated in succession from Central High School.

The tradition began during the summer of 1981 when the two eldest Baskerville daughters enrolled in the University of Virginia (UVa) Preparatory Program. Away from Lunenburg County, Linda Baskerville Poole and Loria Baskerville Yeadon lived together once again, this time on the Charlottesville campus in the Hancock Dormitory.

Linda, the elder of the two, had not initially planned to be a Wahoo. Her first year of schooling took place at Smithdeal-Massey Business College, she said.

Linda said, “It was my desire to challenge myself to achieve as much as my inner strength would allow.” She said UVa gave her the opportunities she needed to achieve her goals.

During that first year, Linda worked towards admittance to the business program in the McIntire School of Commerce. Four years later, she earned her goal by graduating with a bachelors of science in commerce.

Linda now lives in Chesterfield County where she works as a New York Life insurance agent.

Loria, Linda’s younger sister by a year, went straight to UVa, where she was a part of the engineering school. She also graduated in 1985.

Loria now lives in Washington.

Around that time, another sibling was looking to enter college. Maria Baskerville Tyler was accepted into not only UVa, but also received scholarship opportunities from Virginia Tech.

Maria said she had visited UVa many times while her sisters were students there and had even spent time there over the summers.

“It felt like home. I couldn’t imagine attending college anywhere else.”

From there, her fate was sealed. She graduated in 1989 from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences with a bachelor of science degree in mathematics, concentrating in computer science. “UVa well prepared me for the corporate world,” said Maria.

During her years there, she not only gained a degree that led to her 27 year long career with IBM, but she also met her husband.

Delano Tyler and Maria have been married for 27 years and have two children, Chelsea and Troy. The family lives in Durham, N.C.

Ten years from Maria’s graduation, Murray Eugene Baskerville, the youngest of the four siblings, graduated, having chosen to attend the university to carry on the legacy.

In 1989, he received a bachelor of the arts in government. Following his education at UVa, he also received a masters of business administration and graduate marketing certificate from the University of Phoenix.

Currently, Murry lives in Laurel, Md., with his wife Elizabeth Amupanda Baskerville and son, Emmanuel Eugene Tangeni Baskerville. He works at Stevenson University as a student success coach.

Murray said, “I love UVa, as it has opened so many doors just having it on my resume. I also created great relationships that have proven to be my closest friends.”

Linda said the siblings couldn’t have achieved the success they have without the support of their mother. She said her mother is the only person who has been on each sibling’s journey. She’s helped them as they’ve encountered every successful and derailing blip.

“She has been an unwavering cheerleader, not only for us but her entire community,” Linda said.