Originally Saint Anselm's Center offered resettlement services to Indochinese immigrants and refugees, esp. Vietnamese, who wished to begin their new lives in Orange County. To some extent the Center can boast of playing an active role in the creation of the biggest Vietnamese community outside Vietnam itself through its initiation of the refugee services in the County in 1976, immediately after the collapse of the Republic of (South) Vietnam.

Then, 1990 Saint Anselm's Center was chosen to be one of the 60 refugee service centers to do the resettlement for Vietnamese Amerasians (of Vietnamese mothers and American fathers). Right from the beginning the Center was the largest Amerasian center in the country with hundreds of Amerasians being prepared at the Center for their new lives in their fathers' homeland.

The Center has opened its arms to thousands of Immigrants and refugees not only from Vietnam, but also from all over the world, esp. from former Soviet Union (by the sub-office in Los Angeles) with programs such as Refugee Resettlement, Refugee Employment Services, Refugee Family Enrichment, Human Trafficking Victims, Torture Survivors, Social Adjustment, Citizenship and Naturalization, Senior Non-emergency Medical Transportation, Emergency Transportation for CalWORKs Recipients, Tuberculosis Detection and Early Intervention, Hepatitis B and C, Safety Seatbelts.