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Spreading the Love

Local author discusses message behind her newest book

Jennifer Owens is a positive force in the community.

You probably recognize her from the October/November 2016 cover story

Jennifer Owens and her boxer, Harley

of Pickerington Magazine, when we showcased the Pet Loss Support Group of Pickerington, a group designed to help members mourn their deceased animal companions. A true believer in helping others, Owens is taking on another journey of advocating for self-love and empowerment – and, of course, dogs are involved.

To coincide with her motivational speaking, Owens created the exercise, What’s Your Number? The participant chooses a positive word that describes themselves along with two positive words as goals. The letters of each word are then counted and produce a three-digit number specific to the participant. For instance, if they chose the words confident, brave and strong, their number is 946. Try it yourself! What’s your number? It’s not a coincidence that her website’s URL features a three-digit number, www.thisisme143.com. Owens incorporated the concept of counting the letters into the title – 143 translate to I Love You.

Taking Flight

A few years back, Owens was flying home from Florida after visiting a longtime friend. Settling into the two-hour flight, the Pickerington native nodded goodbye to the Sunshine State and prepared for the journey. Suddenly, Owens was struck with inspiration. She grabbed her notebook and immediately started writing what would become her recently published book, The Definition of Unconditional Love.

“Writing this book came really easy because it almost felt like it needed to be done,” Owens says. “Something just kept telling me to do it, just do it.”

The book tells a story about a blind girl who lovingly picks the runt of a dog litter – a small pup with disproportionate ears and a skin condition that makes his coat patchy. The pages feature heartwarming pictures and a word such as Flawed or Purpose, followed by its definition and short blurb that continues the story.

“The goal is to help people find the best versions of themselves with what they already have. It’s not being somebody else,” Owens says. “Many times, you try to do something that somebody else does and it doesn’t work out that way because it’s not you. … The whole message of the book is to just be you.”

Owens finished the story in 2016, the same year it made the top 10 stories for the Reader’s Digest Writing Competition and when she published her first book, Peaceful Paws. After overcoming the financial concerns of publishing another book, Unconditional Love hit the printer and made its official debut in 2019.

“The story kind of sat there – sat there in my house and it kept poking at me,” Owens says. “My husband was like, ‘Just publish it, get it out there,’ and it’s amazing how many people I’ve given it to or sold it to that it helps them.”

Owens recalls a moment before church when she noticed a woman sitting across the room with her service dog. Having a few copies of Unconditional Love in her purse, Owens approached the woman and gave her a copy. She says the woman practically burst into tears, saying her day wasn’t going well until then.

The following week, the woman told Owens the book lifted her spirits so she passed it along to her sister and niece who also enjoyed the message of self-love and positivity. “I thought, ‘What if I hadn’t given her the book?’” Owens says. “It’s just little things on how you can change somebody’s world by what you do or what you say.” Beyond the Pages

Even though the book is complete, Owens’ mission of spreading self-love is far from over. With her new website, www. thisisme143.com, Owens is working on gaining traction as a podcaster, YouTuber and motivational speaker to help people of all ages understand and appreciate their self-worth.

“I think we’ve all had moments in our lives where we’ve felt these different ways, and a couple things happen: we shut down or we withdraw,” Owens says. “When people shut down or kids shut down, the world loses out.”

Thanks to experience in launching successful programs like the Pet Loss Support Group of Pickerington, this new life chapter is going smoothly.

Owens’ next goal is to create connections in and beyond the community by launching her public speaking career. She’s hoping to collaborate with schools and local businesses, and is ready to travel across the country to provide her services. She’s also underway with her YouTube channel, Jennifer Owens, where she releases unedited content weekly.

“I don’t edit them. I leave every flaw in because this is me,” Owens says, laughing. “I could tidy them up and make them perfect, but life is not perfect.” Owens’ son, Brady, with Lola Owens with her boxer, Lola

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Owens’ children, Brittany and Brady.

Owens might be the author and creator of this particular self-love journey, but she says she’s not alone on this adventure. Her daughter, Brittany, sometimes stars in videos and her lifelong friend, Mary Dunklin, a journalist in Texas, gives constructive feedback. Additionally, her aunt, Vicky Menzer, a retired school teacher, provided edits during her writing process – one of Owens’ favorite memories while creating the book. While her husband, Clint; son, Brady; and mother, Patty Jevyak, are nonstop cheerleaders.

“Everybody always has the doubts of, ‘Is it good? Is it not good?’ But to know you have people standing behind you, it’s nice,” she says. “I’m 40-something years old, and it’s nice to pick up the phone and the first thing out of my mom’s mouth is, ‘I’m so proud of you.’”

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