The purpose of Amanda Owen’s new jewelry line is to tell people to “be.” However, Owen has a hard time just be…ing.
In 10 years, Owen has opened Puzzle Pieces, a nonprofit community center that now is a 27,000-square-foot campus serving more than 400 clients; launched the Owen Autism Center; recorded close to 100 episodes of her podcast, Pieces of Me; written a children’s book series; and begun speaking publicly to coach other families impacted by disabilities and entrepreneurs.
And now, she has released a jewelry collection.
“Put simply, I wanted to make a bigger impact,” she said of her latest endeavor, the “be…” collection.
Owen believes that growing up with Nick, her brother with a disability, gave her a unique perspective on disability awareness, inclusion, and opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
“Growing up with my brother Nick really set the trajectory of my career,” she said. “I became a special education teacher and left that career to open Puzzle Pieces.”
The first facility was staffed by Owen and six others and served 32 families. Social and community programming was the focus, but Owen quickly realized the need for vocational training, residential facilities, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services, and supported employment.
“The process of building my own nonprofit, which now has a $5 million operating budget and serves more than 400 clients, developed within me a leadership mindset that I wanted to share with other female entrepreneurs,” she said.
Pieces of Me was launched to share the pieces of her story.
“From advice for parents and siblings to those with disabilities to disability advocacy, to nonprofit leadership, growth mindset and more – I try to be vulnerable in sharing my journey,” she said. “I am really trying to share my journey and the knowledge I have learned along the way.”
With the lives she has touched and the stories that have been shared, Owen knew she wanted something tangible to remind people – specifically women – they are capable of being whatever they want or are meant to be.
“So many times I wanted to gift something to serve as encouragement to a mom who just received her child’s diagnosis or a friend that is second-guessing herself,” she said. “I could never find the right thing.”
So, Owen created pieces of her that could be used in these moments.
“Sometimes we need a reminder to be… bold, brave, still, the person you were meant to be, the person you are scared to be, the person you dream to be,” she said. “Whether you need to remind yourself to ‘be’ or remind the women around you, this jewelry says it all with one simple word.”
She hopes the piece serves as a daily reset to invest in the individual and a reminder to keep working to be your best version.
“But, most of all … be OK with being you,” Owen said.
Currently, the “be…” line features three pieces of jewelry and Owen puts the charm on, but she said the real dream and impact will be when the collection is successful enough to employ those with disabilities to aid in the work and shipping of the items.
She also hopes to add more products that will serve as meaningful gifts for women to share with others in their lives.
“Pieces of Me is always evolving with my journey,” Owen said. “My goal is to reach and impact as many people as I can.”
The jewelry can be found on Owen’s website, and she is entertaining the idea of pop-ups with the “be…” collection.
