About Us

The moment of meeting & the movement forward

Confluence is made by and for those who call this community home. We value shared leadership and the wisdom that each person brings to the group. Our Gatherings and other events are informed by the seasons and the natural, social, and cultural landscape of Missoula, MT. Together we seek to make meaning of life and experiences through art, music, poetry, contemplation, conversation, and sacred stories from the Christian tradition. We welcome the moving Spirit that stirs within us and among us and we hope you leave our time together with your heart open to the world around you and inspired to engage authentically.

Our Story

Confluence was born from the desire for connection centered around big questions of faith and life, where belief in any particular religious tradition was not assumed, and where people could learn and practice ways to live out values of hospitality, curiosity, compassion, and justice in the world. Our namesake is an honoring of the many waters that join together in our valley, and an honoring of how our gathered community meets to be transformed and move outward.

Since 2017, Confluence has experimented with different ways of being community together. We continue to learn and grow in response to the needs and desires of our community who gather regularly, and of the Missoula community as a whole. Confluence's current era began in the fall of 2021 when a group of leaders met around poetry, prayer, and desire for spiritual nourishment. At that first meeting we committed to gathering as Confluence for one year. And now we are celebrating 2 full years of being community together! We continue to move into a future that is still unfolding. We look forward to learning and growing with those who name Confluence as a community where they feel at home.

Meet the Confluence Leadership Team

The Leadership Team is responsible for Gathering planning and regular operations

Rebekah Cochrane

Rebekah is a pastor, creative community builder, and spiritual seeker. She loves to play outside in all seasons. Running, biking, skiing, and stopping to smell the flowers with her wife, little daughter, and two pups are some of her favorite moments in life. Rebekah has been shaped by the Railroad Creek valley in Washington, Lake Superior in Minnesota, and the rolling hills of south central Pennsylvania.

Colter Murphy

Colter is a poet who loves to garden and spend time on the water. He names the Pursat River in Cambodia, the Sacramento River in California, and the North Fork of the Flathead in Montana his home waters. He lives with his wife, Stephanie, and their cat, Josh.

Meet the Confluence Anchor Team

The Anchor Team is responsible for governance, accountability, and long-term vision. Leadership Team members are also a part of the Anchor Team.

Jennifer Hudson

Jennifer has been a seeker of spiritual connections throughout her life. She has studied spiritual direction and the expressive arts, and facilitated many groups over the years in church community and beyond. Jennifer loves connecting with others to chew on the big and small questions of life, and to appreciate our belonging in the natural world. She values mystery, mischief, and finding the Vibrant in the mundane. Jennifer works as a psychotherapist and is joyfully mothering 2 teenagers by the skin of her teeth.

Carlee Wood

Carlee is a marketing professional who finds joy in movement, the outdoors, community, good books, and collecting seashells. She has been shaped by the Pacific Ocean, Zahuapan River in Tlaxcala, Mexico, and Flathead Lake.