Hi there! I’m Hannah Tomlinson, writer at The Welcome Cat and lover of all things hospitality. I enjoy food and pretty things, but most of all I enjoy making meaningful connections with people. I wonder if that’s why you’re here too? I’m glad you’re here!

I grew up in a home full of people. I am the oldest of three, so it wasn’t that we had a huge family, but every week we hosted Bible studies in our living room. On any given Sunday or Thursday evening we’d have an extra 30 to 50 people around, singing songs, eating whatever everyone brought, and enjoying being together. The concept of an open home is an easy one for me. Anytime we were in the market for a new home, the first thing my parents looked for was a living room big enough to hold a crowd!

Moving was the hard part of my childhood. My parents would be assigned to new regions every couple of years to start new home churches, so by the time I was 13 I had lived at 7 different addresses in four states. Every time we moved I was a stranger again. Every time we moved I would hope that people would be kind enough to let me belong in their world.

The warm welcome of people in our new town would make all the difference, and fifteen addresses later, it still does!

Good hospitality has the power to turn strangers into family, making a place for everyone and an opportunity for everyone to give. Hospitality is something that everyone can do, anywhere they are and whatever they have, because first and foremost, hospitality is an attitude.

Attitude is just one part though, so we have a lot to talk about! Hospitality is also about creating an environment where people feel comfortable, and practicing manners that let people know they are welcome and important.

I call it the MINDSET, SPACE & HABITS of hospitality.

I have so much to share with you! I believe the basics of hospitality are simple and the specifics of making it happen are as varied as the people doing it.

I hope you enjoy all the stories, insights, interviews and action items. Ultimately, I hope you will be encouraged and inspired to open your home and your heart to friends and strangers, make them feel important, and make them feel welcome.