At the age of 17, she emigrated to the United States, where she settled in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to work as a housekeeper for her brother, Anthony Kaupas, who was pastor of St. Joseph Parish there.
She was asked to lead this new venture, and she began her studies toward this end with the Sisters of Mercy of the Holy Cross in Switzerland in October 1902.
Although the Priests Council disbanded in 1904, Kaupas determined nonetheless to pursue the idea of a new religious congregation.
[1] In 1905 Jeremiah F. Shanahan, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, agreed to sponsor this new congregation.
M. Cyril accepted Kaupas and two companions into the novitiate of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, based in Scranton, for their preparation for consecrated life.
In 1928, the Sisters of St. Casimir began their health care ministry with Holy Cross Hospital's opening in Chicago.