Ethel May Beddoes was born in 1888 in Habberley, in Shropshire, and by the 1901 census she was living in Worthen, Shropshire.

She became a nurse for the Red Cross, and her permanent address is given as Ludstone Manor Farm, Claverley, near Wolverhampton. On 25 May 1915, at the age of 27, she became working at the 2nd Western General Hospital in Manchester. This was a Territorial Force General Hospital, which were usually based at existing hospitals and other large buildings. The main 2nd Western General was based at Whitworth Street, but also had more than 20 other sites in Manchester and Stockport. Ethel stayed there for two years. On 29 August 1917, she moved to the Military Hospital Bagthorpe, in Hucknall Road, Nottingham. On 21 March 1918, she moved hospitals again, this time to the 1st Southern General Hospital, which used some of the buildings of the University of Birmingham. She was discharged on 21 April 1918.

There is a second card for her, as she picked up duties as a V. A. D. again on 8 May 1918, when she was paid £20. This time she worked at the Military Hospital in Purfleet. Her duties there were terminated on 16 May 1919, by which stage she was being paid £22.