For Crystal Field, executive director of the sanctuary, providing safe haven for these horses was a calling. Field embarked upon creating the sanctuary during the pandemic. She recalled telling herself, “‘Now it’s time for me to step up my notch that much more and actually dedicate myself to rescuing them.’”

So Crystal and her husband moved from Oregon to Southeast Arizona and began Moksha Sanctuary by creating a 501c3 nonprofit. She now has 23 wild horses on her sanctuary near Pearce. That includes 17 Alpines from the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest.

“They were considered ‘unauthorized livestock’ and so they hired a contractor; the Forest Service hired a contractor, to remove the horses.”

These rescued horses survived when some 50 others in the group were found shot to death in the forest. Crystal has given these beautiful wild horses a place, as she says, to be free.
She has plans to expand the sanctuary to include a “healing by way of horse” retreat, with an emphasis on veterans with PTSD. And she has future plans to add on to the current 36 acres.

The plan is to “expand into the properties outside of our perimeters and then rescue more horses and just have it perpetuate itself.