On April 19, 1895, despite the serious economic shortage that lay ahead for the mission - "a great burden," Mother Frances would say - a mission was begun in Kukus, Bohemia, in the Diocese of Koenigsgraetz: "the kindergarten of the Sacred Heart of Jesus". Mother Frances’ perplexity was evident and well founded. She spoke openly about it with Brother Franziskus Sommer: "I came to Kukus, but I immediately realized that it was impossible for our sisters to carry out an activity. In fact, it didn't add up. There was a lack of money for the construction of the building and Mother Frances, in good conscience, did not want to ask people for money: "The kindergarten is a great burden, because so far only 500 florins have been paid. To continue to circulate subscriptions for the donation of the bricks goes against my conscience, because we are not Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Where can we hope for help? This is not a place to build a kindergarten. In these days I will speak to the Bishop and ask his advice; if he accepts my opinion, the sisters who are there will leave Kukus immediately”. In the meantime, it was taking longer, and the sisters continued to hope they would maintain the mission.
Two years later, however, in 1897 the situation was aggravated by a serious fire that compromised the stability of the house and forced the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother to close the mission and return to Vienna.