Ruth M. Young was nicknamed "Babe" after all-star slugger Babe Ruth when she skipped school to play sandlot ball, said her friend and live-in care provider, Lori Zuhl.

That toughness pervaded as Ms. Young went on to become a combat nurse in the Pacific during World War II and later a psychiatric nurse at the Veterans Administration hospital.

Ms. Young, of Mount Oliver, died of congestive heart failure Tuesday. She was 85 and had suffered from Alzheimer's disease for several years.

She often spoke of getting caught in a typhoon as their ship approached Okinawa, where she served as a second lieutenant in the Army Nurse Corps.

"Some girls were holding the rosary beads and some girls were playing poker" during the storm. Ms. Young said she weathered the storm with the poker players, Ms. Zuhl said.

Upon her return to the United States, she trained at the University of Pittsburgh to be a psychiatric nurse. While caring for her father, who was paralyzed in an accident, she taught nursing at St. Francis Hospital. She worked at Mayview State Hospital and for years worked as a clinical specialist for the Veterans Administration.

Many of her patients were combat veterans, said Ray Devine, her cousin. After she retired in 1981 to take care of her mother, a few patients kept her home telephone number and called to check in with her long after she left the VA, Ms. Zuhl said.

Ms. Zuhl said she learned patience and kindness from Ms. Young and considered her a mother.

Ms. Young is survived by four cousins. A funeral was held Friday.