Keeping active helps 99-year-old Antioch Red Hat Society 'queen' stay young

ALL OF HER adult life Flora Lavy has donated her time to organizations and clubs of one form or another. So when she moved to the Quail Lodge a few months back and saw that the senior residence didn't have a Red Hat Society on the premises she decided she would start one herself. She wasn't about to let anything stand in her way, including the fact that she will be celebrating her 99th on Dec. 26.
"I was with the Red Hat club for 10 years in Bethel Island and thought it would be fun to bring it to these ladies here," Lavy said.
For nearly 40 years, Lavy was a resident of Brentwood, but for a brief time while her home was being built by her sons in Brentwood she lived with one of her sons in Bethel Island. At that time, around the early 1970s, she became active in the Bethel Island community and continued to participate in groups there while living in Brentwood.
"I didn't have to work, so I helped out with whoever would let me," Lavy said.
Lavy raised four sons while her husband Robert "Mickey" Lavy worked as a taxi driver. When she moved to Bethel Island she became involved with the Bethel Island Women's Club. She was an active member and even held the position of president in 1997 at the age of 87. She was also an active member of the Bethel Island Lions Club where she helped to plan the trips to Reno. Sometimes the group trips she set up required two buses because so many members attended, Lavy said.
"I didn't really want to be president or in charge of any of the clubs I belonged to. I just wanted to help out," Lavy said.
For many years Lavy helped to build the senior community center in Brentwood. She helped on fundraisers and activities in getting the club off the ground.
Lavy was born in 1910 in Stephens County, Georgia, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She said that she could clearly remember World War I, which started in 1914 and ended in 1918. As a young girl one of her most treasured memories is riding a horse and buggy around her home.
In 1942 she and her husband and her four boys set out for California where there was more opportunity. Her husband didn't serve in the World War II and wound up doing well driving his taxi during that time. When her boys, Richard, Gerald, Joe and Carl, were young she made all of their clothes as well as her own. She loved sewing and could pick up fabric for much less than purchasing clothes.
When they first moved to California they ended up in the San Diego area. It wasn't until her sons moved to Northern California that she and her husband came to live in East County. The Lavys found a nice piece of property in Brentwood. Her sons were in the building industry and helped her and her husband build their home where she lived until moving to Quail Lodge just a few months ago. Lavy's husband died 36 years ago.
About 10 years ago Bethel Island started a Red Hat Society group. The national club celebrates life over 50. Women from all walks of life belong to the group who believe that silliness is the comedy relief of life. The group bases it beliefs on sharing a bond of affection, forged by common experiences and enthusiasm about where life has taken them.
The woman who starts the group automatically is picked as "queen" of the group for one year. Lavy says she will be queen for a few months but then it will be someone else's turn, because, she really isn't interested in being in charge.
The club hosted its inaugural lunch a couple of weeks ago where 10 ladies signed up for the group and a few more sat in to see what it was all about. There were also members from the Bethel Island group in attendance who presented Lavy with a crocheted doll, which naturally was dressed in red with a red hat. All of the women who attend the club each wear a red hat that they have either made themselves or purchased at one of the many Red Hat Society stores or shops around the area.
The ladies are planning several outings and lunches at various local restaurants. Lavy says that she likes getting involved in groups like the Red Hats.
"You have to stay active to stay as sharp as I am at 98 years old," she said.