As the boat left the dock, most of the women found seats around the picnic tables on the top deck. They set their purses underneath the benches and unloaded bags of snacks.

But most of them didn’t sit for long.

As the conductor of the Songo River Queen approached a section of heavy traffic, the women lined up along railing.

Dressed in various shades of purple, they wanted to be seen.

They waved at families gathered on lakeside lawns, whistled at two shirtless men in a passing speedboat and hollered at guys on a dock.

One of the men pointed to the boat and shouted to his friend, “Hey, see that girl in the hat! She’s pretty.”

The women cracked up. Some took a bow.

They were all wearing hats, red ones that clashed with their purple blouses, dresses and slacks.

Acting silly

As members of Red Hat Society chapters, the women are required to wear the mismatched outfits whenever they get together.

Saturday’s two-hour cruise on the Songo River Queen marked the first time that chapters across Maine joined for one big event.

More than 260 women – ages 50 and up – showed at the dock in Naples, wearing sequin visors, spray-painted straw hats and hats in the shape of lobsters.

It was an afternoon to sit around, socialize and act silly – a typical Red Hat Society gathering.

“There are no bylaws, no dues. We just go out and have a good time,” said Carmen Mercier, a 73-year-old member of Auburn’s Red Hatters.

A retired nurse who raised three children, Mercier was one the original members of the Auburn chapter. She said most of the group’s 10 members are widows.

“Now that we’ve raised our families and done all of that work, it’s time go out and have fun,” she said.

The Red Hat Society was started when a California woman, Sue Ellen Cooper, read a famous poem that begins, “When I am an old woman I shall wear purple with a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.”

Using the poem as her credo, Cooper founded the first Red Hat Society. She required nothing of the members except that they be over age 50 and they wear purple clothes and red hats when they meet.

Over the past five years, chapters have been formed throughout the United States, Canada and Australia.

Women from more than 25 chapters in Maine, including the Bangor Babes in Bonnets, the Lake Region Hot Flashers, the Red Hat Divas of Casco Bay and the Mad Hatters of South Paris, went on Saturday’s cruise.

The Electric Slide

Some had trouble reading the numbers on the raffle tickets. Others passed up the cupcakes because sugar isn’t allowed in their diet. And a few had trouble climbing the steep stairs to the top deck.

But that didn’t stop most of them from laughing, doing the Electric Slide and flirting.

As the boat approached the Songo Lock, the captain introduced them to the bridge conductor, Paul.

“Hiiiii, Paul,” a woman screamed.

Minutes later, they whistled at a water skier just as he toppled over.

“It’s fun to to dress up and act foolish,” said Barbara Carignan, who is 66 and lives in Durham.

A member of the Red Hot Divas of Casco Bay, Carignan chose a red baseball cap decorated with lace and silk flowers for the occasion.

“We’re showing that you can be elderly and have ball. Get rid of the stereotypes of the rocking chair. You don’t have to grab my arm to cross the street,” said Colleen Danley of Bridgton. “We took care of our husbands. We took care of our kids. Now it’s time to take care of ourselves.”

“The whole point is to do whatever we damn well please,” said Joan Hodgdon of Portland.

As the boat approached the dock, a gray-haired woman in a red straw hat and purple polyester pants untied a purple balloon from the railing. Without turning around to see who was watching, she leaned over the edge, let it go and smiled as it floated into the clouds.

lchmelecki@sunjournal.com