Ursula Tibbels Auer: The Nurse Who Served Across Two World Wars
I have been learning about the people who served in the wars. And I discovered Ursula Tibbels Auer.
She was born on the 23rd of April 1883 in Missouri in the United States, a time when women didn’t have many opportunities. She trained as a nurse in Kansas and then studied food science at the University of Washington.
She worked as a teacher before becoming involved in nursing organisations. By the 1910s, she was already active in the Washington State Nurses Association.
When the First World War started, she served with the American Red Cross, she worked across Europe, including in France, Belgium, Turkey, Greece, Italy, and Serbia. In 1919, she took charge of an infant welfare work, which helped vulnerable families and also displaced children.
For this, she was awarded the Cross of Mercy. When she returned home, she got married to Carl Ludwig Auer in 1920 and together they started a family. During the 1920s, she co-founded a baby food company in Seattle, which helped to improve nutrition for children. She continued her work as a school nurse and social worker.
During the Second World War, she again served, teaching first aid, home nursing, and even gas mask use. She remained active in veterans’ and service organisations.
She lived a long life of service, passing away in 1981 at the age of 98.
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