About Us

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange

St. Joseph Health System is a ministry sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, a religious community of the Catholic Church, founded in 1650 in Le Puy, France during a period of great poverty and upheaval.  Their mission, to bring all people into union with God and one another, serving all spiritual and corporal needs in all works of mercy, has extended to every continent of the world.  In 1836 the first Sisters of St. Joseph came to the Unite States and subsequent congregations were founded from East to West.

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange began in Eureka, California in 1912 and moved to Orange in 1922.  Today they engage in a wide variety of ministries; i.e., education at all levels, healthcare, spiritual and pastoral services, church activities, job-skills training for youth at ris, women’s shelter, justice advocacy and overseas missions.  Through St. Joseph Health System their ministry of healthcare continues in a collaborative effort that reverences the dignity of all persons, provides compassionate care, promotes health improvement and creates healthy communities.

St. Joseph Health System

During the flu epidemic of 1918, the Sisters responded to the needs of the people of Eureka who later urged them to open their first hospital in 1920, St. Joseph, Eureka.  The hospital was staffed with fourteen Sisters and one lay nurse.  Since then many thousands of people have joined the Sisters in hospitals, home health care agencies and community-outreach programs of the St. Joseph Health System.  Today more than 22,000 employees contribute to the health of 600,000+ people each year.  The System’s hospital and other health services are located in Northern and Southern California, Texas and New Mexico while the System’s Corporate Office is located in Orange, California.

Our Mission

Our Values

What we believe in:

Dignity               Excellence               Service               Justice