As a Red Cross nurse in World War I, Elmira Bears (rhymes with cheers) put in months at nightmarish service in France. After the Armistice, she stayed on for seven months as chief nurse for Herbert Hoover's relief commission to Belgium. Back in the U.S., she continued her career until 1925, when she married Homer Wickenden, a social-welfare official.
When World War II began, her memories sent her back into action. In May 1941, Mrs. Wickenden left her home and two daughters in Bronxville, N.Y., to set up the Red Cross Nurse's Aide program in Washington. Five months later, back...
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