Horse inspires a spirit of giving

IC photo by Laura V. Sausedo

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Cathy Maxwell and her horse Eternity, which inspired her to form ?Spirit of the Horses.'

DRAPER — Eternity has many meanings, but for Cathy Maxwell, it means Spirit of the Horses.

Five years ago Maxwell, a parishioner at Saint John the Baptist Parish in Draper, received a very special gift: a horse named Eternity. A chestnut Abyssinian , Eternity came to Maxwell in very bad condition, with numerous bites on the skin and underweight by 150 pounds.

Before getting the horse, Maxwell lost her husband in a car accident and after that, she lost both parents and other loved ones. When she received Eternity, she felt in great need for some kind of healing. "I made a pact with her; she has to heal on the outside and I will heal on the inside," said Maxwell. "She just represents love."

So Maxwell, a real estate agent and member of the Catholic Business Network, formed Spirit of the Horses. She started loading her truck with food that she collected from local grocery stores and delivered it to different places that were in need. She also organized coat drives; every so often she gets clothes that she washes so she can give them away. In these efforts she counts on other St. John parishioners, who volunteer with Spirit of the Horses.

Her two kids are a very important part of this project. Danny, 15, is a student at Juan Diego Catholic School and Caitlen, 14, attends Saint John the Baptist Middle School. They have helped their mother distribute the donations to those in need. According to Maxwell, this has been the best teaching that she would have been able to give them because they have, through this project, learned about sharing, compassion, love and care.

The charity so far has helped organizations such as the Midvale overflow shelter, which is part of the Road home; the Sandy/Copperview food pantry, the Sandy Boys & Girls Club and Draper Senior Citizen Center.

Just last year Maxwell distributed approximately $100,000 worth in food.

"She does a great job," said John, a homeless man from Salt Lake City who has received food from Spirit of the Horses.

Among the upcoming projects that Maxwell has in store is a plan to take a few horses to retirement homes because "we want to improve the quality of life for people, and I think the horses can do that," she said.

Maxwell is working to have Spirit of the Horses registered as a non-profit organization and she is in search of a lawyer that can volunteer to do that.

"If everybody will do something to help others, the world would be nicer," she said. "We each have so much to give and it is so fulfilling."