 Her job as a ship's draftsman included taking measurements of ship features as required by her engineer colleagues to allow them to designate the placement of upgrades such as new anti-aircraft guns.Stern’s first assignment aboard ship occurred June 29, 1943, aboard the USNS "Escalante", a tanker (hull number AO70).This was followed by assignments aboard a further 229 ships before her career at the Navy yard ended in January 1946.