From 1926 to 1948, 15 Sisters of St. Joseph of Baden ministered in China. Their mission in Hunan Province included an orphanage and hospital. Sister Theresa Joseph Lung, a native of Hunan who entered the congregation in 1933, remained in China after the sisters left and died there in 1994. The community has sheltered refugees from Cuba, Haiti, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Bosnia, and Kosovo, and has been instrumental in helping them find homes in this country. In 1997, the sisters started Girls they established a separate non-profit corporation to operate Villa St. Joseph, a non-sectarian, 120-bed, long-term care facility with a specialized unit for Alzheimer's patients.