In 1941 she joined the German Red Cross and its "Sisterhood for Abroad" ("Schwesternschaft für Übersee") which was headquartered in Berlin. She worked as a red cross matron in various locations including Berlin, Halle, Essen, Wiesbaden, Metz and Strasbourg. It was in Strasbourg that she was captured by the Americans early in 1945, becoming briefly a prisoner of war. After she was released she was working as a nurse in the Dresden quarter of Radebeul where she had found a refuge of sorts during the devastating air attacks of February and March on the city centre.