ROGERS — The first rule of the Red Hat Hotties is that there are no rules, Queen of Na’u Terry Fallatt explained. The club, which meets monthly at the Adult Wellness Center, is really just for fun, she said.

“If we’ve gotten this far - our husbands are raised, our kids are raised, we’ve done the PTA and all the commitments - this organization is just to have a good time,” she explained.

But they do have an oath for some new members. It reads, in part, “Do you agree to take our foolishness seriously?” Since they meet at the Adult Wellness Center, members of the chaptermust also be members of the center, meaning they must be older than 50. The AWC has a $25 annual membership fee, but Fallatt told the chapter that if they know anyone who couldn’t afford that fee, scholarships are available.

“There’s no organization, you just roll with it,” Fallatt explained as she passed out leftovers from the potluck snack table as prizes for the best-dressed members.

The October meeting was a special occasion. It was time to elect a new Queen, so the members all wore their best Red Hat finery.

The hats ranged from a cowboy hat with a red boa as a band (which matched the member’s red cowboy boats) to a sequined, straw hat decorated with red silk gloves.

Gail Cnudde found a red bra at a garage sale, so naturally she attached it to her red hat. Another local chapter made purses out of red bras, she said.

“It’s a conversation piece,” she said about her head gear.

Sometimes the group has outings. One time they took the Ozark Transit bus around Rogers and Bentonville and then ate lunch, Cnudde said.

Sometimes they make things at the meetings. Several of the ladies wore name tags made out of polymer clay shaped - what else - like a hat. They also made Valentines and sent them to the Veterans Hospital last winter.

Other meetings are less constructive.

“Next month I’ll hit myself over the head,” Fallatt said. It’s traditional for the outgoing queen to induct the new queen by hitting her on the head. Fallatt just happens to be entering her second term as queen.

The Red Hat Hotties has more than 40 members, but because attendance isn’t mandatory, 15 to 20 attend most meetings and that’s fine, Fallatt said, as long as they have a good time.

Community, Pages 3 on 10/21/2009

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