When Lizzie Walker tries to stay home from school one morning, she learns from her grandmother the value of creating big change by starting small and simple. Her grandmother, Maggie Lena Walker, knows this from her own experiences as the first woman ever to charter an independent bank in America, and Maggie learned this lesson from her own mother, a former slave who provided for her children by washing clothes for the wealthy families of Richmond. Lizzie is impressed and inspired and imagines a way in which she can benefit her community by starting with something small.

Note: Though this is historical fiction and the characters have been developed to accommodate a story, their attributes and development may be useful as reference points and inspirations.