Imagine… sitting on the steps of the your house, chatting with friends while your mom is at work, watching your little sisters run around the neighborhood as if they just consumed several tablespoons of sugar. The joy that you feel, the sun hitting your youthful face, the warm breeze gently touching your skin. Sounds glorious right? Yet, life for this woman was far from that. As a young child, Phaedra Swann grew up in Section 8 housing with her mother and three younger sisters. Her father was mostly absent from the picture, leaving her to help her mom raise her siblings. Surprisingly, this challenge did not scare her as she effortlessly assumed a maternal role model for her sisters. Even though her mom could barely afford to put food on the table or pay the bills on time, she cherished her childhood like every other child. From then on, she placed her best efforts into her academia. She graduated top of her class, delivering the prestigious valedictorian speech at her high school graduation. Due to financial circumstances Phaedra entered the workforce as a typist continuing to help her mother provide for her three younger teenage sisters. Yet, all these amazing opportunities were granted to Phaedra because of Howard County. The county gave everyone equal opportunities no matter if your race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic class. Fast forward ten years, Phaedra was a married woman with a baby on the way. As a mother and wife, she found time to enroll in online college courses and she graduated with not only a bachelor’s degree, but a master’s in business. From her life so far, Phaedra accredits her success to the opportunities given to her when she came to Columbia at five years old. This county influenced Phaedra to aspire to her dreams leading her to seize all opportunities that came to her in the future. And because of these equal chances, Phaedra is able to transform her impoverished upbringing into her own rags to riches journey.