Who We Are

We are Catholic women who share a love for Jesus and gather to be encouraged and equipped to live life joyfully, wholeheartedly, and abundantly as beloved daughters of God. We gather to be sent.

Empowered and anointed by the Holy Spirit, we believe every baptized person is sent into their community to proclaim the Good News that is so transformative it can’t be hidden under a bushel basket of fear, busyness, or apathy. We are committed to enkindle the warmth from our hearts to give the light of Jesus to this world. From here, we don't go home to do great things, but to do small things with great LOVE.

Our Story

Wholehearted Catholic Women’s gathering began when a few women responded to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to provide a vehicle of encounter with Jesus. After organizing Catholic women’s retreats, days of prayer, and leading Bible studies, Alisa Kostecka thought Spokane needed a women's conference. She wasn't the only one who thought so. Meanwhile, Michelle Oresky, then a Youth Minister and engineer, also thought the ladies needed a conference of their own. While the men of the diocese had an annual conference, there was nothing for women. Brian Kraut, Director of Evangelization for the Diocese of Spokane, offered encouragement and connected two women in the Spring of 2017, and Wholehearted was born. The first conference took place in February of 2018 at St. Thomas More in Spokane. This gathering takes place during the bleakest days of our Inland Northwest winter, when we need a little warmth and sunshine that only comes from being together with our whole hearts given to the One who gave us everything good.

After selling out our Spokane location year after year in a matter of hours, we were inspired by Alexis Peters in Chewelah to realize a dream to expand by inviting other locations to host a hybrid event at their parish. In 2025 we launched Wholehearted CONNECT in four locations around the diocese and serving nearly 600 attendees expanding from Spokane to Chewelah, Okanogan, Pasco, and Walla Walla.

We continue now with your prayers and support. God desires all souls, so we're just here to help make Him known.

Wholehearted CONNECT | OKANOGAN

By Diocese of Spokane

Wholehearted CONNECT | OKANOGAN

In-person/livestream fusion Catholic women's gathering at Our Lady of the Valley, Okanagan