Helping children from difficult backgrounds and tending to a herd of cattle usually don’t belong in the same story, but through a group of long-time friends who wanted to positively impact lives, these two things have come together.
Brad Martin, Director of Maxwell Farms, and his three high school friends, Jody Watt, Barry White, and Mark Duffel, grew up together while showing cattle in the 4-H program. Showing cattle is more than just traveling around with your cows; it’s a
very intense and involved lifestyle that requires meticulous care of your herd and scrupulous attention to detail. Martin and his friends learned attentiveness, care of animals, hard work, and good sportsmanship- values that have gone with them past their childhood and have proven valuable in their adult lives.
In 2017, Martin wanted to give the children at Connie Maxwell the same opportunities that he and his friends had while in school. But there was a problem: showing cattle requires specific breeds and strains of animals and a storehouse of proper equipment to do it well.
Despite having gone separate ways after graduation and 30 years passing, Martin contacted his friends to see if they could help. Martin reached to Jody Watt first since he was still showing his own cattle. After sharing his vision, Martin asked Watt if he could help. Watt excitedly agreed to help. Watt was able to donate cattle and equipment which jump-started the program.
After getting the program started, Martin then reached out to Barry White. Martin saw that White was still involved in showing and had a specific breed called Shorthorn Cattle.
“With a deep red coat, patches of white, Shorthorns are beautiful animals, and I knew they’d be an incredible addition to Maxwell Farms’ herd,” said Martin
Once again, when Martin shared his dream of giving the children at Connie Maxwell the same experiences they had while growing up, White was eager to use his skills and resources to help.
White donated all his registered cows and their calves, as well as genetic material and show equipment. “If he had it, and we needed it, Barry donated it,” said Martin about his friend’s generosity.
As the cattle program was underway, the farm needed a team of horses to pull wagons. Horse- drawn wagon rides have become a staple of Connie Maxwell, especially at our annual Christmas and Corn Maze events. Martin sought out the help of yet another friend, Mark Duffel.
Duffel was able to connect us with the kinds of horses we needed. We were able to acquire two beautiful Belgian draft horses.
After working with Martin and hearing more about the programs the farm is offering the children, Duffel wanted to contribute as well since he also was involved with show cows. He was able to donate several units of genetic material for use in breeding and additional equipment to be used in shows, further propelling the value of the herd and professionalism of the program.
Through this program, our children at Connie Maxwell are learning the values and lessons that only caring for animals and competition can teach you, just like Martin and his friends experienced 30 years ago.
Reflecting on this incredible story, Martin says, “30 years later, we come back together, wanting to help people with what we’re passionate about, which is farming, agriculture, horses, and cows.”
There’s a lot of ways to help children in need, and some of those ways are grazing out in a pasture right now. Whether it’s an investment of time, resources, funds, skills, or cows, anyone can step in and use what they have to help the children served by Connie Maxwell Children’s Ministries.
Want to see how you can partner with us and change lives for the better? Contact Jay Boyd, Senior Vice President for Strategy and Engagement at (864) 878-2019 or jboyd@conniemaxwell.com or visit conniemaxwell.com.
