Austin PBS Expands Your World

What connects us—to each other, to our neighbors, to the world? For Edie Avery and her granddaughter Bird Holmquist, a special bond was forged years ago when they started watching Masterpiece together. Now Bird is all grown up, but their shared love of PBS endures.

“My grandmother used to live with my family, and she had the only room that had its own TV. On the DVR it was Masterpiece Theatre after Masterpiece Theatre—it was all Masterpiece. So we would watch endlessly."

They soaked up all the enthralling dramas and mysteries, and even as Bird got older, the two women still reunited as often as possible to snuggle up and indulge in their favorite show. All those hours with her “nana” made a lasting impact for Bird, inspiring her to pursue British literature studies. And Edie was inspired too—to travel!

“PBS has really opened my eyes to the greater possibilities in the world. If it hadn't been for PBS kind of goading me along and opening my eyes, I don't know that I would have done the traveling.”

Edie and Bird spent so much time with the beautiful English backdrops and settings which factor so heavily into many Masterpiece presentations, that wanting to learn more about all things British was a natural inclination for them both. What better way to combine Bird’s college background and Edie’s adventurous spirit than a trip to The United Kingdom? And that’s exactly what they did in April of this year, with Bird playing tour guide. Three weeks abroad, two generations of women and one common passion: public television.

“I could not be more proud of my granddaughter and her accomplishments, and I want to make sure that we have lasting memories, and someday when she has grandchildren she can say, ‘Well I remember when Nana and I did this together.'”

The memories that Edie and Bird made over the course of their Masterpiece viewings and their epic trip will last forever. PBS connected grandmother and granddaughter, and those threads keep growing—to each other and to the world around them.

Bird’s positive lesson, journeying from young PBS viewer to today: “KLRU inspires me to love my neighbor.” Edie’s refrain, as the always supportive nana: “You’re right! You gotta love your neighbor.”

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Want to broaden your horizons this summer? KLRU has a program to help you take that first step! Go the way of Edie and Bird and delve into Masterpiece, or cast your net beyond England with Rick Steves’ Europe. Prefer exploration closer to home? Check out Samantha Brown’s Places to Love or Texas-focused The Daytripper.