“When Calls the Heart” maintains millions of faithful fans for the runaway hit and most beloved scripted series, in Hallmark Channel history, but the past several Sundays have been gloomier since the showrunners opted to pull the March 17 scheduled episode. Rather than airing “Heart of a Mountie,” cast and creators embarked on a “creative hiatus” for some serious “retooling” in the wake of the legal and professional fallout for Lori Loughlin under the college admissions scandal.

Executive producer, Brian Bird, and several of the “When Calls the Heart” cast have been considerate enough to assure the fans that Season 6, and the cherished series itself, will return.

What is a hiatus, for the waiting throngs of “Hearties,” is assuredly a period of immense effort for everyone involved with the saga of love, life, and faith in the Northwest Territory.

This Sunday, April 7, makes four weeks since “When Calls the Heart” has filled loyal hearts and living rooms with its uplifting stories but, as reported April 6 by International Business Times, the hopeful spirit of spring is filling the set and the work on the series. No official date for the anticipated return has been announced, but the mood of Brian Bird and others hard at work gives every reason to think it will be soon.

A sunny morning

Brian Bird’s April Fool’s message on Twitter was anything but a joke. Hope was the focus of the image and the words, reflecting on the sunlight against the chapel/school of Hope Valley at “the crack of dawn,” according to the executive producer.

He exhorted fans to “never lose heart,” while thanking them for “your continuing patience” through this period of adjustment and reworking. The message reiterated that just as “When Calls the Heart” surged from a groundswell of support from real people who transformed the show into the family-friendly sensation that already set record-breaking numbers in the ratings for Season 6, togetherness of the cast, crew, and the fans will ensure that everyone will “get through this together.”

Pascale Hutton, who portrays Rosemary Coulter, was the latest cast member of “When Calls the Heart” to spread positivity.

Less than a week ago, Hutton posted an exuberant still shot of herself and her on-screen husband, Kavan Smith, who plays lumber mill owner, Leland Coulter, carried away with laughter. She thanked fans for “love and support” but especially for “patience” during this unexpected period of absence.

Her character has certainly portrayed coming through difficult times.

Rosemary sacrificed the fabric and food for what she had planned as a high society wedding in Hope Valley for the good of saving those involved in a tragic landslide. It's no wonder why the actress understands how longtime “When Calls the Heart” fans are feeling amidst the delay.

Paul Greene, Andrea Brooks, and Jack Wagner have also reached out with warm messages of gratitude to the fans.

A fitting keepsake

“When Calls the Heart” will certainly return long before Christmas, and fans do have the luxury of looking back at past episodes so they can be all the more primed for when Season 6 resumes. Still, a little planning for Christmas never hurts and the series has introduced its 2019 Christmas ornament, “The Hope Valley Water Tower” which will be available for purchase November 8.

The community’s vital water source has become iconic through the seasons, and a few sharp-eyed fans have commented that pipes going to and from the tower have sometimes not been visible or attached. Nonetheless, the remembrance makes a very fitting keepsake and a treasured gift for any “Heartie” and like water itself, renews hope eternal, all for a $19.99 price.

Christmas may be months away, but millions of “Hearties” will celebrate as though their holiday dreams were fulfilled once “When Calls the Heart” returns.
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