Wisconsin, 1941. A group of townspeople gather on a farm field, eagerly observing amateur pilot Dale Rounds as he readies his airplane for its inaugural flight. Dale built the plane with the help of his father, Emmet, from spare automotive parts. As the community watches with growing excitement and skepticism, Dale and Emmet remain determined to show that their contraption can really fly. Waiting expectantly on the sidelines among the crowd are Dale's girlfriend Winifred, and mother Helen. After a few false starts, the plane barrels down the makeshift runway and glides effortlessly into the air; progress is pioneered. The tale itself, paints a lyrical portrait of a close-knit Midwestern family dealing with loss, change and social progress during a pivotal time in American history, as the country is on the brink of war. Plans are altered and new paths are chosen. New lives are born and others are lost. Consistent though, is the community's gathering to share in and mark these special moments in life, as charted through the Rounds family.