Ilse had a good youth in Rexingen. The Jewish community and the Jewish school still existed and she had very dedicated teachers.

The picture shows her with her friends. The first girl from the left is not known, next to her are Ilse Rosenfelder, Helene Pressburger, Ilse and Trude Schwarz.

In 1937, Ilse began an apprenticeship as a dressmaker in Stuttgart. Before she could finish her apprenticeship, the company was dissolved. The Jewish owners fled Nazi Germany. Ilse returned to her parents in Rexingen on April 4, 1938.