St. Joseph’s Hospital, Buckhannon, WV

On March 28, 1921, the hospital was opened with only ten beds available for patients. The doctors had to donate the beds because of the lack of money.  In fact, the sisters couldn’t afford beds for themselves and used orange crates and boxes for furniture.  Sister Alocoque, one of the founding sisters of St. Joseph’s and a born optimist stated, “If we can only have one paying patient, we can make it!”  They started with one and the hospital has been growing ever since.

St. Mary’s Medical Center, Huntington, WV

The trip from our first home in Richwood, WV to Huntington, WV was long and winding. Three sisters made the trip by train with $1000 to help fund the new hospital they were going to start in Huntington.  This was a lot of money for 1924.  When they finally arrived at what was then St. Edward’s College, they realized that the money had not arrived with them.  In our history, there a couple of stories explaining what happened to the money and how it was returned to the sisters.  One story says that the driver went back to the train station and found the open briefcase with the money still intact in the middle of the street.  A second version says that a swallow, a symbol of good fortune, flew into the house through a screenless window.  The next morning a man came to the door with the briefcase and the money after seeing the newspaper ad about the lost money.  We will never know which version is accurate but there is no denying that God was with the sisters and their mission to serve the people of Huntington.

With the generosity of many people and a lot of work the sisters were able to open St. Mary’s Hospital on November 7, 1924.  It is now known as St. Mary’s Medical Center.