Bishop John Henry Luers invited the sisters of Dernbach to come to the diocese. Luers himself was born in Münster. His family had emigrated when he was about thirteen. He became the first Bishop of Fort Wayne (1848–1871). On 8 August 1868 the first eight sisters left Dernbach (Prussia) to sail for the US from Le Havre, (France). They were: Sister Rosa Blum, the niece of Bishop of Blum, she served as their Superior; also Sr. Eudoxia (Bender), Sr. Hyazintha (Neuroth), Sr. Matrona (Moehring) Sr. Facunda (Wand), Sr. Bella (Sienoecke), Sr. Henrica (Sienoecke) and Sr. Corona (Jahn). They were chosen out of 200 sisters which had volunteered to serve in the US. They boarded ship on the 13th and reached New York on 24 August 1868. After a brief stay, they took the train to Fort Wayne, Indiana. From here, they took a horse-drawn cart to Hessen Cassel, Indiana. Here they established their first mission on the 'Feast of St. Rose', 30 August 1868. They nursed the sick, and looked after the parish church. On May 4, 1869 St. Joseph Hospital became the first American hospital founded by the Poor Handmaids. It was located in the former Rockhill Hotel near Fort Wayne, and also served as the motherhouse of the order. They operated a school of nursing from 1918 to 1968, and operated the hospital until 1998, when it was sold. St. Joe is a member of the Lutheran Health Network. The first parochial school the sisters took charge of was that of St. Paul's in Fort Wayne, of which they took charge on 6 October, 1869. They also engaged in private nursing, caring for the sick in their homes. St. Vincent's Orphan Asylum, also in Fort Wayne, came under their care in 1887. St.Roch's Sanatarium for consumption opened in 1899; Holy Family Hospital in La Porte, Indiana in 1900. They were also active in the dioceses of Belleville and Alton. The sisters were introduced to the local community by Father Edward Koenig, pastor of St. Paul's Church at Fort Wayne. In due course Father Koenig remained as 'advisor' with the sisters at their newly established Motherhouse in Fort Wayne, serving as a liaison between the sisters and the bishop. He fulfilled this function for three consecutive bishops of the Fort Wayne diocese (John Henry Luers, Joseph Gregory Dwenger and Joseph Rademacher) until his death on January 22, 1898. In