The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (I.H.M.) was established as a Catholic religious institute of sisters in 1845. The institute was established to alleviate some of the need for teachers for the daughters of French-Canadians in Monroe Michigan. In 1858, the congregation spread to Pennsylvania in order to educate German-speaking Catholic children. In 1859, the Michigan and Pennsylvanian congregations split, becoming two unique entities under the name of the order. Today, four communities share the same origin story – The Monroe IHM Community; Pennsylvania-based Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Scranton; Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Immaculata; and the Oblate Sisters of Providence in Baltimore. The sisters who serve at Saint Francis de Sales are members of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the Immaculata community.

The IHMs are committed to God and to the Church by the profession of the public vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The charism of the sisters is Love, which continues to manifest itself today in the sisters’ joyful service of God and his people; creative Hope, which puts all its confidence in God’s loving Providence; and Fidelity, which inspires fervor in their vocation in Christ and in their mission in the Church.