Céad míle fáilte. A hundred thousand welcomes.

Jessi Holmes

Founder & Steward, Áit Draíochta
Writer · Consultant · Circle Facilitator

About Me

Haigh a chairde. Is mise Jessi Holmes. (Hello friends. I'm Jessi Holmes.)I am the founder and steward of Áit Draíochta—a place of story, sacred travel, and seasonal belonging. As part of the Turtle Island Irish diaspora, my work is rooted in remembering and return, and in the ongoing practice of decolonizing the mind through language, story, and relationship to place. I am a lover of moonlight, wild water, words, and felines, with a deep reverence for land, memory, and the unseen threads that shape our lives.Áit Draíochta is a sacred, hospitable space for fellow exiles, wanderers, and seekers—an invitation to reconnect with Self, Earth, and Spirit (however you define it). Through writing, seasonal sacred circles, bespoke Irish travel, and one‑to‑one presence, I offer spaces for slowing down, listening deeply, and living in relationship with the turning rhythms of the year.At the heart of my work is a reclamation of faith and a deep exploration of belonging—what it means to live in right relationship with land, story, and community, and what responsibility the Irish diaspora holds in remembering, repairing, and standing in meaningful solidarity with oppressed peoples.My path has been shaped by both devotion and disruption. I hold a degree in Biblical Counseling from a fundamentalist Southern Baptist seminary and spent ten years in formal ministry, alongside a lifetime immersed in evangelical culture and education. I have also lived through profound experiences of spiritual trauma, emotional abuse, and the loss of community—circumstances that led me into more than a decade of personal therapy, deep inner work, and an ongoing process of healing and reintegration.What emerged was not a rejection of the sacred, but a transformation in how I understand and live it. Today, my practice draws from Celtic spirituality, Irish cosmology, contemplative traditions, and earth‑honoring ways of knowing—approaches that recognize the interwoven nature of ecology, story, and spirit. I am particularly shaped by the early Irish spiritual landscape, where indigenous wisdom and Christian devotion once coexisted in a textured and dynamic harmony, offering a vision of spirituality rooted more in soil than in structure.Over the past four years, I have devoted myself deeply to the practice of sitting within and holding sacred space. I completed a six‑month creative mentorship with Kathy Scott of The Trailblazery in 2023 and have participated in her circles since 2022. During this time, I have also sat under and learned from Indigenous teachers, deepening my understanding of relational, place‑based, and respectful approaches to spiritual practice. Alongside earlier ministry experience and formal training in compassionate care and spiritual direction, I bring more than 15 years of experience facilitating and guiding spiritual gatherings, with recent years rooted in contemplative, community‑centered circle work.Through Heroines & Heretics, my Substack publication, I explore cultural memory, spiritual reclamation, and the lives of women and unconventional thinkers who refused inherited limits. I believe deeply in the power of story as a form of healing, resistance, and return.Ireland—Éire, the land of my ancestors—sits at the heart of my work. Since my first journey in 2013, I have traveled extensively across all 32 counties, immersing myself in Irish history, geography, language, and living culture. I now offer bespoke Irish travel consulting, creating thoughtfully curated itineraries that move beyond tourism into genuine relationship—with land, story, and place.Whether through writing, travel, seasonal gatherings, or one‑to‑one conversation, my work is rooted in accompaniment rather than authority—holding space for discernment, belonging, and the slow, meaningful work of becoming.Go raibh míle maith agat—may a thousand good things be at you. You are warmly welcome here.