Not far from the relentless traffic on Interstate 75, animals find peace at Mill Creek Farm’s Retirement Home for Horses.
When they hear the hum of Mary Gregory’s golf cart, even the blind horses press their noses through a nearby fence and wait for the inevitable carrot.
Mary Gregory first envisioned Mill Creek Farm with her late husband, Peter Gregory, when they lived in England during the 1950s.
Just outside of London, she said, a haven allowed horses to rest in between hauling carts of milk and bread.
“They would have a horrible life,” she said. “They never saw grass. We had always said, ‘Oh, if we had the money we would like to do something like that.’”
She met Peter Gregory at the University of London before they later entered the hotel business, living everywhere from Portugal to Jamaica.
In 1983, the couple decided to spend all their money on a farm in Alachua, where 135 horses, along with a donkey and a mule, now live.
“We’ve always loved animals,” she said, “but we went a step further. We wanted to save them and keep them.”
The farm — a 335-acre plot of land about 30 minutes from Gainesville — has never turned a rescue horse away, Mary Gregory said.
The oldest living horse, Dakota, is 43 years old and came to the farm in 1995.
After forming a nonprofit organization and deeding their property to the horses, the Gregorys ensured their dream would outlive themselves.
“It took quite a bit of work with lawyers to get everything the way Peter and I wanted it,” she said. “We live in it until we die, and then the house goes to the horses, too.”
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Lynne Brennan, a volunteer at Mill Creek since July 2012, greets a visitor at the farm. Brennan typically works the welcome kiosk on Saturdays.
When Peter Gregory passed away two years ago, the Gregorys’ youngest son, Paul Gregory, abandoned his real estate job in South Florida and joined his mother.
Paul Gregory remains at the farm, where he continues his father’s work.
“I never dreamt that he would handle the horses like he did,” she said. “He’s done an absolute wonderful job.”
Paul Gregory said the farm is a sanctuary.
“Once you start doing something like this, you kind of lose track of the outside world, to be honest with you,” he said.
He said there are many admirable rescue organizations, but his family’s farm is one of the few places where horses can find a permanent home.
Visitors and sponsors allow the farm to stay open with donations.
Every penny, Paul Gregory said, goes toward paying for grain, veterinarian bills and maintenance. He said each horse costs about $250 per month.
His mother, Mary Gregory, said she knows the name and story of each horse on the farm.
Every day, she drives a golf cart around the paddocks and meadows with a bag of carrots and her 10-year-old basset hound, Lady Guinevere.
“I’ve always been terrible and forget people’s names, but not my dogs or horses,” she said.
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Pictured is the sign that memorializes the late Mill Creek Farm founder Peter Gregory, who started the horse retirement home with his wife, Mary, in 1983.
Mill Creek only has one stipulation: No horses from private owners.
The farm will take retired police horses and racing horses, or horses that were previously abandoned and left to starve.
Sgt. Possum, a horse who retired from the U.S. Army, arrived with a certificate of appreciation from President Barack Obama.
“It’s hanging up in the chicken coop where the washrooms are,” she said.
The farm, located at 20307 NW County Road 235A, Alachua, Florida, opens its gates to the public from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays.
The entrance fee is two carrots, and up to 500 visitors come on any given weekend, Mary Gregory said.
Throughout the week, volunteers help Mary and Paul Gregory with upkeep and grooming. Volunteers come and go, Paul Gregory said, and the farm always needs more help.
Lynne Brennan started volunteering at the farm in July 2012. She cleans the farm and grooms the animals three days a week, and she works the welcome kiosk each Saturday.
Brennan learned about Mill Creek from an article about a rescued teacup horse.
“I called that morning, came out the next day and I’ve been coming back ever since,” she said. “This truly is a horse paradise. I have so many people say to me, ’Can I retire here too?’ It’s just a heaven on earth for horses.”
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For every oak tree at Mill Creek, a horse once stood nearby.
Trees that reach more than 10 feet tall share soil with scrawny trees planted less than a month ago, each signifying a life lost.
Mary Gregory plants the trees to remember.
Horses and dogs are buried in the Field of Dreams, and almost all the animals die of old age, she said.
After several decades, Mary Gregory said she still gets sad every time an animal passes on.
“A part of you seems to die every time,” she said.
Mary Gregory said even fleeting guests form a connection with the farm and its residents.
Each year, she said, a group of equine dentists visits the property with a group of students for two weeks.
“When they were here the last time, they said, ‘I don’t think you realize it, but we go to just about every state in the U.S., and there is not another place like this,’” she said.
Mary Gregory, who only leaves the property to visit Publix, said friends often ask if she gets bored doing the same thing every year.
She responds with a smile.
“Oh, I could never get bored if I tried,” Mary Gregory said.
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Cheyenne, a 30-year-old mixed-breed horse, was rescued by Okeechobee Animal Control when she was found thin and frail walking down a county road.
