REXBURG, Idaho — Colleen H. Maxwell was honored with the 2004 Exemplary Woman Award March 21 during a special fireside at Brigham Young University-Idaho.
The award recognized her as an example of womanhood, which is exemplified through her characteristics as a wife and a mother, service in the Church and community and support of her husband, Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve.
"Sister Maxwell has an unlimited desire and capacity to serve others — a characteristic that has been evident throughout her life," BYU-Idaho President David A. Bednar said. "She not only seeks to exemplify Christlike characteristics in her own life, but works to establish them in the lives of her family and others as well."
Sister Maxwell has been active in numerous community organizations — serving on the advisory committee of the Department of Family Living and Consumer Studies and as a member of the alumni board of her alma mater, the University of Utah. She has also served as a volunteer for children suffering from spina bifida and as a volunteer at the Guadalupe School, focusing on the literacy needs of at-risk children.
Speaking to students at the fireside, she said, "While we have concerns about conditions in the world and the lessening of moral standards, we must not become too disillusioned by them. We need to exhibit to others that we have hope and faith in our Heavenly Father — that if we put our trust in Him, He will help us resist the evils of the world."
She said seeking for material objectives sometimes exhausts one's time and energy and crowds out the desire for sanctification and purification.
"If our desire is deeply rooted and strong, with prayer and the guidance of the Spirit, we can strive for such noble goals," she said. "For we know that without His love and guidance, there is little we can do, but with that love He so willingly gives us, there is nothing we cannot do."