Thursday, women of the Senior Center of South Pearl River County strutted and sashayed down the runway wearing some of the latest clothing trends from Cato’s Fashion.
The event was held in conjunction with the center’s Mother’s Day program.
“We always recognize our mothers in honor of Mother’s Day,” Executive Director for the Senior Center of South Pearl River County Darlene Adams said. “However, we also include and acknowledge all those ladies that did not have children of their own, but were mentors to their nieces or nephews, children at their church or in their neighborhood.” All of the mothers received a gift from the senior center and participated in an ice cream and cake social.
Prior to the festivities, Cato manager Connie Alphonso helped the models into their clothing.
“We wanted to volunteer and help out the seniors and have some fun in our community,” Alphonso said. “We want to make sure we let all the ladies in our area know we are there for all their wants and need for clothes.”
Alphonso donated the clothing for the event. A few of the ladies liked their items so much they purchased them, she said.
The seniors modeled a variety of styles and new trends including Aztec print, lace and crochet blouses and palazzo pants, Alphonso said.
“You don’t have to be a certain age to wear a set of clothes,” she said. “It’s all about having fun and being happy.”
The models, aged 66 and over included Karina Smith, Alma Blancher, Edna Creel, Fran Gerhart, Barbara Redman, Geri Lisotta, Annette James and Gladys Cruz.
Redman, who changed her mind about participating at the last minute, said she had more fun than she thought she would.
James added that it was nice to get out of her regular clothes and dress up.
“It gave me a chance to be a model, which is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Smith said.
Creel said it was a wonderful opportunity and she was glad Alphonso offered to do this.
“Thanks to Cato Fashion we were able to have fun with a fashion show as well,” How we top this for next year will surely be a challenge,” Adams said.
Cruz said she loved modeling in the fashion show.
“Mama’s gotta look good,” she said. “What I like is that they have clothes for the mature ladies. We are the golden girls.”