ELKINS PURPLE MAJESTIES
** NEWS ARCHIVE 2003-2004 **

Archived news listed by descending date.
Please note that some links or images may no longer work or appear.

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  December 23, 2004  

HAPPY HOLIDAYS & MERRY CHRISMU
KKAH TO EVERYONE!

The holiday dinner at the Motor Lodge on December 13, was a great success and there were many lovely ornaments given in the gift exchange. More details on the festivities soon.

  November 29, 2004  

The Hard Hat Brotherhood is a nationwide group of men (usually husbands of Red Hatters) who like getting together for fun and to have a good time doing 'guy stuff'. Visit them on the web at the above link or email headhardhat@hardhatbrotherhood.com

  November 12, 2004  

More sad news to report. Our newest member Judy Myers husband passed away yesterday. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

  November 5, 2004  

Some very sad news to report. Elkins Purple Majesties member Betty Loftis died this afternoon after a long illness. I have
no further details but I am sure Judy and JoAnn will let us know funeral arrangements as soon as possible. Please keep Betty's family in your thoughts and prayers

  November 4, 2004  

The holiday shopping trip Gerri and Charlotte were planning has been cancelled.

  October 28, 2004  

Gerri and Charlotte are planning another bus trip for November. This time we will go S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G-! If you need more information please contact Gerri by email or phone her at 636-7572.

I am still having trouble with my computer. For the past 4+ months my connection to the internet has been sporadic at best -- causing lots of headaches and delays. I hope to get things changed over soon but until then these site updates should keep everyone happy:

I will have the other pictures up soon. Again, it mainly depends on getting the computer problems resolved.

  October 2, 2004  

ENJOY THE FOREST FESTIVAL!

  September 24, 2004  

EPM member Eloise Mann had quadruple bypass surgery last weekend. Please keep her and her family in your thoughts and prayers. Please continue to keep EPM member Betty Loftis in your prayers also. Chapter members can report other news by sending an email to the EPM newsletter at:

ElkinsPurpleMajesties@yahoogroups.com

  September 23, 2004  

QM Judy would like to have reservations for the Oct. 3rd WV Symphony performance by this Monday, Sept. 27 - this way we will know approximately how many seats to reserve. Individual members attending are responsible for purchasing their own ticket in advance. If you do not make a reservation you can still attend. Just meet in the lobby at 1:30 PM with everyone else and enjoy the fun! 

  September 6, 2004  

Well, it's Labor Day and I am laboring away. I know I am supposed to take the day off like the rest of America (pause for laughter) but I had to do at least a little catching up on things around here. I apologize for not updating the site as routinely as I normally do but it has been a very busy summer for me. I also am continuing to have problems with my computer and server so I am at the mercy of some things beyond my control (no matter how loud I shout to the heavenly gods.)

In the meantime, I want to bring everyone up to speed. The most pressing news is that the EPM website will be undergoing some internal server changes. I am hoping things will run smoothly and there won't be any major flubs. If you always access this website thru the intro page of

http://www.mcquain.com/redhat

you should be alright. That is the way everyone is supposed to enter the EPM website as the intro page is located and hosted on a permanent server. The address for the intro page will never change!

IF HOWEVER, you bypass the intro page and have bookmarked the "What's HATpening?" news page (or some other page) instead you will need to update your bookmarks or favorites. All pages EXCEPT THE INTRO PAGE will be effected by the internal changeover. So to be safe just remember to always access the EPM chapter website thru the http://www.mcquain.com/redhat intro page. Add the intro page to your bookmarks or favorites.

The server change is one of the major reasons there has been a delay along with family matters. Site and picture updates for

and any other items will be posted once the server changeover is complete.

In regular Red Hat news, the July birthday lunch was quite a success -- despite a downpour that forced a quick rearranging of tables from the open to the covered deck at the River Car. It literally was elbow-to-elbow, but that just let everyone get to know their neighbor a little better.

QM Judy debuted our fancy new name tags and everyone was surprised to find their very own kazoo on the tables. The CLEAVAGE COOLERS Judy and JoAnn made were also a big hit and several women performed a skit called "Bubblegum".

The trip to Wheeling Downs was a hoot, although no millionaires were made that day. Several novices learned to tangle with the one-arm-bandit and found themselves surprisingly becoming addicted.

August took us to the rustic BrazenHead Inn in Mingo. Many thought it was the best meal yet and the group was serenaded by the owner who sang "The Red Hat Lady" for us. I am sure we will return sometime soon.

That's it for now -- see you at the September meeting at Blackwater Lodge.

  June 20, 2004  

WEST VIRGINIA DAY!

SITE UPDATES

Gerri Rosencrance is also planning a chartered bus trip to Wheeling Downs on Monday, August 2nd. Cost is approx. $20 per person but final price will depend on total number going. Contact either Gerri or QM Judy for more information. If you want to plan a trip for the group I am sure Gerri can provide more information on the bus company. The ideas are endless!

  June 15, 2004  

Adaland Mansion was host once again for our monthly luncheon. The rose garden was in bloom and it was a lovely hot summer day. Pics will be posted soon.

My how time flies! It was just one year ago this month that our chapter was formed!! Our official chapter birthday celebration will be next month so don't miss the fun in July. 

The Little Red Hat Shop has been adding to our shopping links. Check out their beautiful hats in pink and red ... plus gifts baskets and other accessories. Order online or by mail.

  May 30, 2004  

This Memorial Day please keep in mind these chapter members who are ill. Please drop them a note and let them know you are thinking about them. We wish them all the best and a speedy recovery.

  May 29, 2004  
The May luncheon hosted at  Cardinal Inn was a great success. Granddaughters, nieces, and others were warmly welcomed as our special guests in honor of Mother's Day. We also greeted our newest members:

Judy Jack officially took over as the new reigning Queen Mother for the Elkins Purple Majesties at the May meeting. Queen Mother information on the website has been updated for Judy's reign so please note the changes when making your reservations. Pictures of the event and our guests have been posted so check out our future Red Hatters!

New pictures of the infamous SPEEDO MAN from the Royal Caribbean cruise can also be viewed here (the last 3 pictures in the table.)

Please also note the new calendar dates for luncheons and other events here on the NEWS page.

  May 13, 2004  
Don't forget the luncheon this Saturday at the Cardinal Inn in Huttonsville, WV. It should be a great afternoon as many of the members are bringing daughters, granddaughters, and friends as guests. Judy Jack will also officially take over as our new Queen Mother --  so get ready for a summer of Red Hat fun!

OTHER NEWS: Red Hatter Faye Maynard has been ill recently so please drop her a line and wish her well. Fashion Bug in Elkins and Bridgeport has several nice lavender tops plus pink and lavender hats. Tell all your pink hat friends it's time to go shopping!

SITE UPDATES:

  April 29, 2004  
GOOD NEWS TO REPORT!!
  During the April luncheon, JUDY JACK graciously accepted the position of NEW QUEEN MOTHER for the Elkins Purple Majesties. The transfer of the crown will officially occur at the May meeting ~ but we were so excited that we went ahead and crowned Judy ahead of time! Pictures from the luncheon at Deer Park Inn and the coronation ceremony will be uploaded soon to the Picture Gallery section of the Red Light District.

The handsome man several Red Hatters are schmoozing with in some photos was our waiter Chris. He certainly livened up the party that afternoon and I am sure several of the women felt 25 again! (Many of us want to name him as our EPM mascot.) Carmen Holmes, Queen Mother for the newly formed Parson WV Red Hat chapter, was also given a warm welcome as our special guest. For more information on the Parsons chapter, and other West Virginia Red Hat chapters, visit the Links section of this site.

SITE UPDATES:

  April 13, 2004  
Reservations are full for both the APRIL and MAY luncheons. Queen Mother JoAnn is also working on getting Elkins Mayor Judy Guye to declare April 23 RED HAT DAY locally. I hope everyone also caught the news article about the new Buckhannon chapter that was in Saturday's Elkins Inter-Mountain newspaper. Congratulations to the new group. We hope you have as much fun as we do!

  March 30, 2004  
Fellow EPM Red Hatter Betty Loftis was recently hospitalized. Anyone wishing to send her a note of cheer can contact Queen Mum JoAnn for the address. We hope she has a speedy recovery!

Reservations for both the April and May luncheons are full. Don't let this stop anyone from having fun, however! Any time is a good time to get together with fellow red hatters. Go to the movies, get a small group together for lunch, or simply grab a cappuccino whenever you see a fellow hatter on the street. Remember -- there are NO RULES! Anything goes :-)

  March 24, 2004  
GREAT NEWS! Gwen Doyle who will attend the May Lunch will be our 100th member. Yes, we've hit three magic digits in our chapter membership. Who would have thought just a year ago that we would grow so quickly and have created such great friendships.

In other news, Queen Mother JoAnn and Vice Queen Judy recently attended a luncheon in Buckhannon WV as guests of a new Red Hat chapter that is forming. A warm welcome to our red and purple neighbors. We wish you lots of success and barrels of fun!!

FYI: due to limits on web hosting space, it may become necessary to delete older event photos from the gallery archives. I will try to keep up as many photos as possible but if you would like to download or look at some of the older photos now is the chance to do it.

  March 14, 2004  
Very sad news to report. Elkins Purple Majesties member Charlene Gay  passed away last night, Saturday, March 13, at home. Our deepest thoughts and sympathies are with her husband Bob, daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter and the entire family.

Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Tomblyn Funeral Home of Elkins, WV. Respects may be paid Tuesday * March 16 * 6-9 pm at Tomblyn (see below). The funeral will be held Wednesday * March 17 * 1pm at Tomblyn with burial to follow in Buckhannon, WV.

Queen Mother JoAnn has talked with Bob and he remarked how much Charlene enjoyed being a Red Hatter. Elkins Purple Majesties Red Hat members will attend the viewing at 7 pm * Tuesday * March 16, wearing black with red hats, at the request of her husband. We will dearly miss Charlene's friendship and the fun she brought to our group. 

  March 11, 2004  
The Elkins Purple Majesties celebrated its first "Red-uation" this month!! Official ceremonies for former pink-hatter Diane Clay were held during our evening meal at Graceland Inn. As a fly-up poem was read, a new scarlet caplet took its place on Diane's head where her pink hat had formerly resided. A scrumptious meal was had by all and the festivities were capped by a surprise birthday cake for Diane featuring, of course, a beautiful red iced hat standing proud atop four pedestals!

The April meeting will be held at Deer Park Country Inn in Buckhannon. A new Queen Mother, or co-Queens, will need to be elected so we can keep our fabulous dis-organization going! PLEASE consider holding Queen office for a few months. Perhaps you and a girlfriend could co-Queen together and share the fun.

The May meeting will be at Cardinal Inn in Huttonsville, WV. Space is limited to 50 and filling up fast so hurry. If you would like to bring your daughter, granddaughter, niece, or a friend, please do so. Reservations are due by May 11 to Queen Mum JoAnn 304-636-7615.

  February 27, 2004  
Several more shops have been added to the shopping page. Many of the online stores also accept phone, fax, or mail-in orders and you can pay by check, money order or credit card. Check out the interesting items these places have to offer. I particularly like the parasol and the glamour glasses!

Some other minor site corrections have been made. Hopefully all links are now working properly. REMEMBER: we will be taking nominations for the new Queen Mother at the March meeting. The Queen-elect will work with Q.M. JoAnn over the next few months and take over the crown at the end of the May meeting. 

  February 12, 2004  
There are several important things to cover in this update so please read down through it all.

Duke's Restaurant was the site of our February Red Hat Valentine luncheon. The desserts were delicious! Membership has swelled to 95 RED HATTERS! Pictures should be added soon.

A couple of suggestions were thrown out for possible new events: an excursion on the Tygart Valley Flyer railroad train, a potluck summer picnic, a Mother-Daughter luncheon, a Husband-Wife dinner, and a few members entering the Ramp Cookoff at the Ramp Festival. If you have a meeting idea or suggestion please don't hesitate to email the Queen Mother

General or technical comments about this WEBSITE should go to the RedMaster. Comments can also always be left at the Passion Pit.

NEXT TWO MEETING TIMES:
The next gathering is a DINNER on March 11 at 6pm. The place is the historic Mingo Room at Graceland Inn on the campus of Davis & Elkins College. PLEASE NOTE that this dinner will be on a Thursday instead of the usual Monday. Reservations are due by March 4. 

The April lunch will be the THIRD Monday in April instead of the normal second Monday of the month. The place is the beautiful Deer Park Country Inn in Buckhannon WV. The Inn is a short distance from the old Heavner Grove near Buckhannon and is not hard to get to. Reservations are due by April 15 and SPACE IS LIMITED TO 50 so get your reservation in EARLY!

To make a reservation email the Queen Mum or call JoAnn at 304-636-7615. Upcoming meeting places and times are always listed in the highlighted box at the top of this NEWS PAGE. Reminders are also sent via the calendar of the EPM newsletter.

IMPORTANT NEWS:  JoAnn will relinquish the Queen Mother crown at the end of the May 2004 meeting.  The new Queen Mother will assume royal duties at the June 2004 gathering. NOMINATIONS FOR THE NEW QUEEN MOTHER WILL BE HELD AT THE MARCH DINNER at Graceland. If you are interested in ascending the throne, or have a suggestion about the next monarch, please EMAIL JOANN. It is important that the next Queen Mother be selected soon so she can work with JoAnn regarding the transition.

WEBSITE UPDATES:

Visit the picture gallery in the Red Light District section by navigating via the left or top menu. Some luncheons or dinners may have several pages of pictures to look at. If that is the case, a link to pages 1, 2, etc. can always be found at the bottom of each table of pictures. Just click the page number to go to that page of pics. I will get more Hall of Hat pics up soon along with Purple People Eaters.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

  January 2004 
Our first evening meal was a great success and we are happy to report that membership will hit 100 in no time. It was quite a sight to see all that red and purple fill the Elkins Motor Lodge dining room. I am sure we turned a few heads! Pictures from the last several meetings will be added to the gallery as soon as I can get and scan the scrapbook. ENJOY THE SUPER BOWL!

  December 12, 2003  
The Elkins High School Madrigal Choir  performed for EPM during it's December lunch at the First Baptist Church in Elkins. Secret Santa gifts were exchanged and membership swelled to 88 RED HATTERS! Some pictures from the holiday lunch have already been uploaded to the picture gallery and Hall of Hats. Next month's meeting will be a dinner instead of a lunch. See details in the "Upcoming" box at right.

If you want extra copies of the article that appeared in the Saturday, November 29, 2003, Inter-Mountain newspaper you better hurry! Extra copies are only kept for approx. 3-4 weeks after initial rundate. Call the paper at 304-636-2121 for information.

  December 8, 2003  
Pictures for all past luncheons, with the exception of the November meeting at the Odd Fellows, have been uploaded. The first exhibits in the Hall of Hats are also online for viewing. You can access both at the Red Light District.

If you want to tell others about the chapter website please give them this url:
http://www.mcquain.com/redhat

The url for the online newsletter is:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ElkinsPurpleMajesties

The newsletter works in conjunction with this website but has its own "home" on the internet. At the newsletter home (located at Yahoo! Groups) EPM hatters can email each other using one unique email address. They can also view past messages, view or add events to the community calendar, and more. By joining the newsletter members can stay in touch faster and easier. If you haven't already done so, I encourage you to sign up for the newsletter. A sign up form is located at the bottom of each page on this website.

  December 5, 2003  
Hope everyone enjoyed the news article on the red hatters that appeared in The Inter-Mountain on Saturday, November 29, 2003. If you missed it or want extra copies call the paper at 304-636-2121 for a back issue. I informed several people at the paper about the website so its url could be included in the article but, alas, it never made print. Ditto some other things. I will see if I can get them to run a small news brief in the near future, perhaps with a picture, announcing the site.

Most of the pictures from the various luncheons have been added to the Red Light District. I am still working on the Hall of Hats and Purple People Eaters galleries as well as some other sections. Please leave general feedback at The Passion Pit. If you find broken links or have other technical problems you can email the RedMaster (ie, webmaster) directly.

Don't forget the luncheon on Monday!

  November 25, 2003  
I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving. As the website is new, please let the RedMaster know if you find typos or other corrections. I am already aware of several things but did not have time to correct them before the holiday and I wanted to get something up and running before the news article. I will be adding members to the Yahoo! Groups newsletter list within the next week. If you have not given your email address to the Queen Mother, please do so.

The website address should be included in The Inter-Mountain news article that is set to appear this Saturday, November 29, 2003. You may want to pick up a few extra copies for family and friends.

I will give the whole chapter an update at the December meeting.

  November 23, 2003  
The Elkins Purple Majesties website is launched online. Please add this address to your bookmarks or favorites:

http://www.mcquain.com/redhat

Special thanks to Mike McQuain and mcquain.com for hosting the intro page. Our webmaster's eyes are "seeing red" due to countless late night -- and all night -- hours of work. Hence she will now be known as the RedMaster

If you have technical problems with the operation of this website please contact the RedMaster. If you have questions about Elkins Purple Majesties in general, please contact the Queen Mother. Both email addresses are displayed at the bottom of each page or can always be accessed via the contact links found in the site menus.

  November 2003  
The Odd Fellows lodge is home to the November luncheon catered by the local American Cancer Society support group. The meal is delicious -- the best one yet -- and the new Queen Mother officially takes over.

  October 2003  
Historic Adaland Mansion in Philippi WV is host to this month's tea. Members enjoy dining in the late 1800s mansion and are graciously given a tour afterwards.

Later in the month, several members go on a Royal Caribbean cruise to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Canada. Red hats and purple sneak into the suitcases and the cruise-goers get together onboard for lunch. Red hatters from other areas comment on the onboard gathering but I suspect the highlight of the day is the gentleman in the RED SPEEDO! who can't resist some sassy old women. Speaking of speedos ... visit the fun & games section to read a special ode to the slippery-when-wet attire.

  September 2003  
The beautiful Stonewall Jackson Resort, near Weston WV, hosts the monthly buffet. Red Hatters enjoy lake and mountain views as they dine. The next Queen Mother is voted upon with reins officially changing at the November meeting. Members present at the luncheon receive a small copy of the "Warning" poem.

At the end of the month, several members attend the West Virginia Symphony performance at Harper-McNeely Auditorium on the campus of Davis & Elkins College. The performance is part of the Mountain State Forest Festival. Red hats and purple attire generate a lot of attention!

An Elkins Purple Majesties newsletter is created at Yahoo! Groups. More details and subscription information to follow. If you have an email address be sure to let the Queen Mother know. Don't get left out of the loop!

  August 2003  
Graceland Inn is once again the site for the monthly get-together. The Elkins Purple Majesties is recognized as an official chapter of the Red Hat Society and ideas for a website are started.

  July 2003  
The River Car Restaurant at Revelle's is the site for the second luncheon. Suggestions for the chapter are taken and Elkins Purple Majesties comes out on top. Five Pink Hatters join the group and overall membership expands to 50!

  June 2003  
An Elkins, WV chapter of The Red Hat Society is formed and holds its first luncheon. The Mingo Room at Graceland Inn on the campus of Davis & Elkins college is the site for the buffet and fun.

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