POWELL, Ohio — A new boutique that opened its doors last month is focusing its products on sustainable goods and items made with purpose. But they’re also giving back in a way that means more to them than words can express.
What You Need To Know
- Zen Hen opened its first store in downtown Powell last month
- The store was created with the owner, Tara Schnetzler’s daughter Willie in mind
- Willie passed away from pediatric brain cancer in the fall of 2021 at 10-years-old
- The store is donating rounded-up funds to the Wonder Willie Foundation in honor of Willie and in hopes to find a cure
Opening up Zen Hen in downtown Powell is more than meets the eye for owner Tara Schnetzler. She waters her plants to make them feel more like home.
“I wanted it to be welcoming,” she said.
But this space- with its carefully curated tote bags, jewelry and t-shirts, is a space that brings peace to Schnetzler.
Schnetzler says she finds peace in this space (Spectrum News/Katie Kapusta)
“Everybody needs something, whether it’s a gift for a human or a gift for themselves, it makes them smile,” Schnetzler said.
There are little pieces of Schnetzler’s daughter, Willie, everywhere in the store.
Willie died of pediatric glioblastoma, a terminal brain cancer, in the fall of 2021 at 10-years-old. Her 18-month journey fighting cancer inspired everyone around her- including her mother.
“That’s just a sign to us that we’re doing what we need to be doing and carrying on. So the rainbow has become this kind of happy icon to us.”
It’s still difficult to look back through pictures of Willie.
“I knew I would start doing it when I was ready,” Schnetzler said.
But Schnetzler can’t help but smile, remembering her youngest daughter.
“Rocking her short hair like she didn’t care,” she said.
Schnetzler remembers her youngest daughter, Willie (Spectrum News/Katie Kapusta)
And now, remembering her in a space she’s never been.
“She’s in this space spiritually and it feels really good,” she said.
This store was all created because of little Willie. The family got hens when Willie was diagnosed- which allowed them to have some peace in the most tumultuous time of their lives- bringing them to Zen Hen.
Schnetzler started designing shirts and hats, looking for the perfect play on words to inspire and support a serious cause.
“This speaks to the giving aspect of what we’re doing,” Schnetzler said.
Every patron has the chance to round up their total to donate to the Wonder Willie Foundation, to raise money for pediatric cancer.
“You round up 50 cents every time you’re in here, it’s going to add up, and it’s going to make a difference,” she said.
Now, in this space that has pieces of Willie in every corner, Schnetzler says her daughter, while she may have had some gripes with the store, would be encouraged by what she’s doing.
“She would really dig the fact that everything in here is helping someone else survive and be able to sustain a living and practice an art that they love and carry on,” she said.
