June 1940: The Franciscan Friars of the Atonement purchased the property

Located in Saranac Lake, NY, the property, then known as Rumsey Cottage, was purchased to establish a friary and a novitiate. The compound of 28 acres and several Tudor-style buildings was secured for $12,000.

Following the trends of the times, the Friars instituted their own schools of philosophy and theology, which earned the right from the New York State Board of Regents to confer degrees to prepare candidates for the priesthood. St. Joseph’s School of Philosophy, as the institution became known, continued until St. Pius X Seminary opened at Graymoor in 1960. In 1970, Fr. J. Leon Kotsko proposed to the General Chapter that the Friars establish a center for the treatment of male alcoholics.

February 1971: Friar Carmen Giuliano received the assignment of creating the program

St. Joseph’s Rehabilitation Center opened in the former Novitiate building, “to serve God by promoting healing and recovery for all persons who suffer from the disease of alcoholism and chemical dependency,” and to “prudently use resources to provide treatment and advocacy for those who lack the necessary resources.”

The first class was comprised of six men who arrived for a three-to-five-month period of treatment.

To facilitate the graduates’ return to society, a halfway house was established in Poughkeepsie in 1973, followed by houses in Schenectady and Syracuse. A year later, another such facility opened in Waterbury, CT.

Until 1975: All costs of the program were borne by the Friars and gifts from graduates.

The Center’s growing reputation, however, soon lead to referrals from other than just St. Christopher’s Inn at Graymoor and included social services sources from throughout the State.

Following Fr. Carmen, Fr. Emil Tomaskovic arrived in 1981 to assume the role of Executive Director. St. Joseph’s growing reputation for lasting treatment contributed to both Fr. Carmen and Fr. Emil becoming sought-after lecturers at SUNY schools on the subject of alcoholism.

1981: The Family Program begins

The first residential family treatment component in the State was begun, and continues today, teaching co-dependent individuals about the disease of addiction. Six years later, a separate building housing up to 16 visitors was constructed to provide families with a more therapeutic space to learn and heal.

1986: To more fully serve the community

Outpatient clinics were established in Saranac Lake, Malone, Elizabethtown, Ticonderoga, and Lake Placid. This expansion was followed in 1991 by the construction of a new residential wing to the Glenwood Inpatient site that doubled treatment capacity.

1989: Father Emil was called by the Friars to serve

As the Minister General of the Friars of the Atonement. Father Arthur Johnson, CASAC, arrived in the North Country from Los Angeles that October to become the agency’s third CEO. Father Art served as President and CEO of St. Joseph’s until 1999.

St. Joseph’s continuum of care extended further with the opening of Joseph’s House Supportive Living Facility in 1998 in Poughkeepsie.

2005: Growth continues

St. Joseph’s alumni organization enjoyed membership in excess of 4,000 men and women.

Mr. Karl Kabza acted as CEO and served with devotion until 2007 when Bob Ross became the agency’s fourth Chief Executive Officer bringing with him 30 years of addiction treatment experience.

St. Joseph’s became an independently governed agency, with full authority succeeding to St. Joseph’s Board, in 2008.

2009: St. Joseph’s earned recognition

Voted one of the Best Companies to Work for in New York state is an honor the agency has enjoyed now on ten occasions, most recently in 2022.

Also in 2009, St. Joseph’s was one of only three addiction treatment facilities in the State to receive funding to construct an addicted veterans community residence for servicemen suffering from both addiction and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The very next year, New York State and the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, awarded $12,000,000 in capital funding to acquire from the Friars of the Atonement, and renovate, the Glenwood campus’s main, 53,000-square-foot building.

2013: St. Joseph’s opened its sixth Outpatient Clinic

In the town of Keeseville in recognition of, and to meet the needs of, the transportation difficulties many clients faced while seeking treatment.

In 2014, the Col. C. David Merkel Veterans’ Residence opened to serve male Veterans and their families.

Also in 2014, the Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce designated St. Joseph’s as the community's “Best Business of the Year”.

In March of 2016, St. Joseph’s received a $5.5 million capital grant from the New York State Homeless Housing and Assistance Corporation to establish an 18-unit Supportive Housing facility in Malone, NY.

2017: Youth addiction services added

With the economic advantages of combing services under a single entity, Massena’s Rose Hill Adolescent Residential Treatment Program became a new service of St. Joseph’s continuum of care. Importantly, under this new relationship, the number of beds available there has increased from 14 to 28.