The Purple Majesties rock the 50-plus ladies club

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Cyndi Lauper may have said it best when "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" blasted onto the airwaves in 1983. Now, 26 years later, women 50 and older continue to embrace the anthem through the Red Hat Society's Elkins Purple Majesties chapter by living, laughing and loving.

Reigning Queen Mother Gayle Zirkle explained the Society gives women the opportunity to come together for a time of release through "disorganization" all the while sporting the signature colors of purple and red.

Many of the estimated 90 women who get together have an empty nest or may be widowed, Zirkle said. The time they spend together at monthly luncheons allows them to enjoy a type of "sisterhood" and can help decrease depression and increase inspiration for fun, she commented.

The beginning of the Elkins Purple Majesties can be traced back to 2002 when a group of women put on straw hats and had lunch at Graceland Inn. Elkins resident Sharon McQuain purchased and decorated the hats for herself, Judy Jack, Charlotte Thomas and Geri Rosencrance to help cheer up Jack who had been diagnosed with breast cancer.

When Jack shared the story with friend Lyla Howell, she said their lunch-time adventure sounded like the Red Hat Society. Thus came the inspiration for local women to begin the Elkins chapter of what was becoming a world-wide phenomenon.

The Elkins Purple Majesties officially formed in 2003 and the group continues to keep a strong membership. Approximately 125 women are part of the chapter and about 50 attend the monthly Dutch-treat luncheons that McQuain describes as having no rules and are simply "fun."

At each get together the "Warning" poem by Jenny Joseph is read. Some lines of the poem say: "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple. With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me; and I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves and satin sandals; and say we have no money for butter ..."

The group doesn't raise money for charitable causes or volunteer their time, which sometimes leads to the Red Hat Society receiving a little flack from others, Zirkle said. But many members of the Elkins Purple Majesties volunteer elsewhere and the Red Hat Society is a time just for them, she added.

Former Elkins Mayor Judy Guye even proclaimed a Red Hat Day in recent years. Members went to city hall for the signing and then enjoyed a meal, wearing purple and red of course, to celebrate the occasion.

Part of the fun is creating the outfits and hats, Zirkle said. She draws her inspiration from magazines, walking down the street or anything she sees red and purple, even if it's on a table cloth. It's difficult to pass any red hat without buying it, Zirkle added. Some women dress in suits and others enjoy somewhat silly outfits, which can include red fishnet stockings, McQuain explained.

It's not unusual to see this zany group of women at restaurants, riding through parades on floats or searching for the "next party," says Zirkle.