Before she became First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt was a girl trying to find her voice. As a young orphan, she was shy and made to feel like a failure. But every night, Eleanor would read her father’s letters, full of love and belief in her, and she used his words to help her face her fears.

She took them to school across the sea, where she excelled at her studies and helped other girls with theirs. And back to New York, where she volunteered in immigrant communities. Using her voice to help others gave her courage.

Eleanor began speaking out in bigger ways. When her husband, Franklin, became president, she worked with—and learned from—leaders of marginalized groups, using her standing to fight for workers, women, and people of color. Every victory, big and small, drove Eleanor to do more.