The series follows Lillian and Grace, originally introduced in When Calls the Heart: The Greatest Christmas Blessing, as two orphaned sisters, who were separated when Lillian was seven and Grace was five. The two reunite as adults and open an orphanage in a small northwest town. The period piece is set in 1916 in the western Canadian town of Brookfield. Mountie Gabriel has a romantic interest in Lillian. Chuck, a rancher turned veterinarian, is the object of Grace's flirtations, much to the dismay of his dubious mother, Tess Stewart.
Cast and characters
Main
Morgan Kohan as Lillian Walsh, Grace's older sister who was adopted at a young age and separated from Grace
RJ Hatanaka as Constable Gabriel "Gabe" Kinslow, the local Mountie in town
Greg Hovanessian as Charlie "Chuck" Stewart, Tess' son, and a rancher and the town veterinarian
Wendy Crewson as Tess Stewart, Chuck's mother, who owns the big local ranch
Recurring
Isaak Bailey as Christian, an orphan at the orphanage
Michael Copeman as Ken Newsome, a unfriendly old man
Neil Crone as Ronnie Stewart, Chuck's uncle and Tess's brother-in-law who runs the local hotel
Liam MacDonald as Vincent, an orphan at the orphanage
Kate Moyer as Sophia, an orphan at the orphanage
Riley O'Donnell as Helen, an older orphan at the orphanage who is searching for her grandfather
Kim Roberts as Pearl Mayfair, a resident of Brookfield
Elizabeth Saunders as Eleanor Winters, the orphanage's housemother
Simon Webster as Fred, a curious young orphan at the orphanage
Ava Weiss as Mary Louise, an orphan at the orphanage
Hanneke Talbot as Maggie Parsons, the town nurse who is newly arrived to Brookfield
Jefferson Brown as Joe Moody, the owner of Brookfield's general store
Jonathan Potts as Ben Mendelson
Marshall Williams as Sam Tremblay, a drifter into town who works as a handyman for Lillian at the orphanage
Guest stars
Pascale Hutton as Rosemary "Rosie" LeVeaux Coulter, an acquaintance of Grace's from Hope Valley
Kavan Smith as Leland "Lee" Coulter, another acquaintance of Grace's from Hope Valley
Rob Stewart as Tom Clay, a rancher from outside of town
Kalinka Petrie as Lucie Clay, Chuck's childhood friend who may be romantically interested in him
Kevin McGarry as Nathan Grant, the Mountie from Hope Valley
Emily Anderson as Eve Gardiner, Grace's old friend from the orphanage who is passing through town on her way to New York City
Episodes
Production
When Hope Calls is a spin-off of the long running prime time series When Calls the Heart. Primary filming is at Powassan, Ontario, Canada. It is executive produced by Alfonso Moreno, Brian Bird, Brad Krevoy, Susie Belzberg Krevoy, Michael Landon Jr., Amanda Phillips Atkins, Jimmy Townsend, and Eric Jarboe. Confirmation of the project, the Hallmark Network's inaugural streaming series, was announced February 9, 2019 as part of Crown Media Family Networks' bi-annual Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.
