Walter and Lotte Heskel had to vacate their home in Berlin-Schöneberg in October 1942. Through the move, the Jewish couple met the removals man Erich Scheffler, who gave Lotte Heskel a job as a secretary. Walter Heskel was arrested on the street in December 1942, but managed to escape. Scheffler hid the couple in his house for several days until the immediate danger was over. After that, he also employed Walter Heskel.
After a warning from Scheffler, the Heskels went underground in June 1943. They spent almost a year living in different short-term accommodation, including in a large office building near to Zoo Station, where Hilde Staberock worked as a porter.
The Heskels met Luise Meier, who helped people at risk to escape across the Swiss border, along with locals from the Baden region. Following a long, dangerous train journey during which their forged papers were checked several times, Walter and Lotte Heskel arrived at Singen Station. On April 17, 1944, they reached Switzerland thanks to the escape helpers. They emigrated to the United States in the summer of 1946.