The Girl Who Kept Knocking

The Power of Perseverance and Kindness

Every morning in Nepean’s biting cold, just outside Ottawa, a 15-year-old girl set out—blonde hair whipping in the wind, dreams too big for her tiny 4-foot-10 frame. Her bag, heavy with encyclopedias, hung awkwardly on her shoulder, nearly as large as she was. It was Christmas, and the mornings were dark, the streets lined with snow and ice. At 7 a.m., …