Sister Pia was born on September 12, 1850 in St. Marys, Pennsylvania. She entered St. Joseph Convent at St. Marys on May 1, 1871. After teaching school for many years in Pennsylvania, she served as Prioress of the Convent for three years.

At the age of 60 Mother Pia had already ‘retired’ when Bishop Vincent Wehrle, the first Bishop of the newly formed Bismarck Diocese, stopped at St. Joseph Convent to beg for Sisters to work among the Indians in North Dakota. She was the first to volunteer and became one of four Sisters who travelled to the Fort Berthold Reservation in 1910. She spent her remaining years in the Diocese of Bismarck, never once returning to her original home.

In 1916, with the permanent establishment of the newly formed Sacred Heart Convent at Elbowoods North Dakota, Mother Pia and the other Sisters (including eight new members) transferred their vows to the new foundation. Bishop Wehrle appointed Mother Pia as the Convent’s first Prioress after receiving the vote of the Sisters.

Sometime in the early days at Elbowoods, Mother Pia had the misfortune of breaking an arm. This was a multiple fracture and because of her advanced age the doctors in Bismarck, where she went for treatment, insisted upon the amputation of that arm. Mother Pia would not consent but asked them to bandage it so that she could stand the pain and she would consult her very special doctor, Father Paul of Moll.

She immediately began a novena to this holy Benedictine monk of the 19th century. On the ninth day when she took off all the bandages, she called the Sisters and waved her arm over her head to show that she had been cured completely in a few days of prayer without any care from doctors – no cast, no splint, nor any sling.

In 1920 the motherhouse transferred to Garrison ND, to be nearer the railroad and medical care. In July of 1922 Mother Pia’s term of office was extended to another three years by Bishop Wehrle after a visitation at the Convent at Garrison. That same year Mother Pia also celebrated her Golden Jubilee; she was 72 years old. After Sister Cecilia was elected as the next Prioress, Mother Pia was appointed sub-prioress. The Bishop requested that the Sisters continue to address the foundress using the title Mother.

On July 23, 1928 two postulants were about to receive the Benedictine habit. Mother Cecilia asked Mother Pia if she would like to name them – giving them their religious names. Due to her failing health Mother Cecilia felt this would be the last reception Mother Pia would enjoy. “Oh yes!” she replied, “Let’s name them after the two youngest candidates for canonization – Imelda and Benigna”. Five days later Mother Pia died of heart disease after a year of illness.

Sister Evangelist was born on a farm in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania on June 27, 1854.  She entered St. Joseph Convent at St. Marys on July 4, 1874, and was professed June 19, 1876.

She was one of the three Sisters who accompanied Mother Pia in September 1910 to take charge of the Indian Mission School at Elbowoods North Dakota.  In 1916 Sister Evangelist, along with the other Sisters, transferred their vows to the newly established Sacred Heart Convent.

When Mother Pia Tegler was elected Prioress of the new foundation, Sister Evangelist was appointed sub-prioress.  From that day on she was second in authority; first when she could manage it.  And even though she was no longer sub-prioress after the election of Mother Pia’s successor, Sister Evangelist was still there to give the ‘hows’ and ‘whens’ with emphasis.

Sister Evangelist had taught for many years in both parochial and public schools prior to arriving in North Dakota and continued to do some teaching at Garrison, but only until she could turn this duty over to the younger members and she could retire.

In August 1940 she became bedridden, but received Communion each morning from Father Brandner, for which she was very grateful.  Sister Evangelist died peacefully on December 14, 1940 with the Sisters gathered around her bedside.  She was 86 years old at the time of her death.

Sister Cecilia was born on September 24, 1885 in Heron Lake, Minnesota.  She taught school for a time in Minnesota; the Bauer family lived in Hankinson, North Dakota at that time.

The Sisters of Sacred Heart Convent at Elbowoods were asking for girls who wished to do missionary work.  After reading an advertisement, Sister Cecelia wrote to Mother Pia and entered the convent in 1915.  It was only then that she found out that in 1910, Mother Pia and her group of Sisters had stopped at Hankinson en route to Elbowoods, meeting with the local pastor who made arrangements for them to stay overnight at a hotel.

Following the retirement of Mother Pia, Sister Cecilia became the second prioress in June 1925, a position she held for seven years. It was in 1927, while she was Prioress, that the Divine Office was introduced into the Community.  It is on this successful foundation that we have built the Office that we say to this day.

From 1932 to 1940 Sister Cecilia once again taught school.  In 1941 she helped to open St. Vincent’s Home in Bismarck and became its first superior.  Following that she was the superior of St. Luke’s Hospital in Crosby for a short time, then returned to the motherhouse in Minot where she served as sub-prioress and bookkeeper until 1961 when her health began to fail.

After a lingering illness, Sister Cecilia died at the age of 83 on September 30, 1968 – the Feast of St. Jerome.

Sister Josephine was born in Lansford, Pennsylvania on September 21, 1895 to Michael and Susan Bednarik. In 1915, she traveled west to become a missionary in the newly established Sacred Heart Convent at Elbowoods.

She pronounced her vows on October 21, 1916, the same day that Sacred Heart Monastery became independent. Her vows were received by Bishop Vincent Wehrle, the first bishop of Bismarck.

Sister Josephine obtained her B.A. degree from St Benedict’s College in St. Joseph, Minnesota and began a teaching career that spanned some sixty years. She taught a variety of subjects and grade levels throughout North Dakota in the Elbowoods Government School, Sts. Peter and Paul in Fallon, St. Nicholas in Garrison, Sts. Peter and Paul in Karlsruhe, Hague Public School, and St. Olaf’’s School in Power’s Lake, and Little Flower, St Leo’s and Sacred Heart Academy in Minot.  She also taught in White Plains, New York, Morehead City, North Carolina and Yankton, South Dakota.

Although Sister Josephine ‘retired’ to the Monastery in Richardton in 1974, she kept herself active by studying Hebrew and Russian languages, philosophy, and cultivating tulips and roses. In 1989 she became a resident at St Vincent’s Care Center in Bismarck, a facility sponsored by the Benedictine Sisters of Richardton. She died at St Vincent’s on May 20, 1991.

Sister Rita was born in Ohio on April 21, 1870. Being the only daughter in the family she remained at home caring for her sickly mother. Only after her mother’s death did Anna enter Sacred Heart Convent on August 13, 1915 at the age of 45.

On October 21, 1916 she made her first profession and her final profession on October 22, 1919.

Sister Rita is said to have been a good cook.

On April 6, 1930 Sister Rita died of septic meningitis at St. Alexius Hospital in Bismarck, and was buried at Garrison.