She was born in the south of Brazil to German parents. She studied medicine at university and then set up clinics in Curitiba. She soon saw that much of the sickness, such as diarrhoea and dehydration could be prevented if parents knew how to care properly for their children. In 1983, her brother, Paulo Evaristo Arns, a bishop in the Catholic Church encouraged her to set up Children's Pastoral. It is now in 42,000 Brazilian communities, and has over 260,000 trained volunteers.