In September 1920, the Soeurs de Notre Dame du Perpétuel Secours (Sisters of Perpetual Help) moved into the house where they began to teach children aged 5-16 years old. They lived and taught in the small 360 square foot (109 m2) house for several weeks while waiting for Adélard to complete the construction of the convent of St. Joseph, following the building of the presbytery and the church. Thus, with only a few chairs and newspapers as curtains on the windows, the house was technically the first convent to house the Sisters of Perpetual Help.
Thankfully, following a visit to the convent by the Ministry of Education, the province provided a grant of $8,000 for the construction of a French Catholic school. Thus, in 1930, a separate school, St. Therese's School, was built.
The sisters continued to work in Hearst from until 1941, teaching more than 200 children a year, at times with as many as 75 students in one class, thus laying the foundation for a French Catholic education in the community.