Our heritage

Sacred Heart was established in Eugene 1936 at the request of local physicians aware of the admirable reputation the Sisters of St. Joseph of Newark (later the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace) had established as hospital administrators in rural Washington and Alaska. With the help of communitywide fund-raising efforts, Sacred Heart then undertook an extensive program to enhance the 75-bed hospital. By 1941 a new six-story wing had been completed, adding 100 beds and much-improved surgical and laboratory services. Most recently, in 1998, Sacred Heart completed $4 million worth of improvements to its open heart surgical suites and vascular labs.

Sacred Heart is part of the Oregon Region of PeaceHealth, a community of health care professionals that also includes PeaceHealth Medical Group, Cottage Grove Community Hospital and South Lane Medical Group, as well as partnerships with laboratory, diagnostic imaging and outpatient cancer services. PeaceHealth is the sisters’ not-for-profit health care system based in Bellevue, Wash., with additional hospitals and other facilities in Ketchikan, Alaska; Bellingham, Wash.; Longview, Wash.; and Florence, Ore. Learn more about the spirit of PeaceHealth in an interactive slide show.

Our setting

Eugene (pop. 140,000) is the largest community served by PeaceHealth, with cultural amenities more typical of larger cities: the world-famous Oregon Bach Festival, for example, and the recently expanded Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon, next door to Sacred Heart.  On days off, head to the beach (just an hour away), or grab your raft or your rod and reel and head up the McKenzie River. Just a bit more driving and you’ll be in central Oregon’s recreational playground.

Back to CPE Home Page