If all of the women wandering the square Saturday in their red and pink hats and purple and lavender outfits don't remind you Mother's Day is coming up, then one of the non-profit booths will.

The Next Step Home will have a booth at Red Hat Day on the square, which marks the 10th anniversary celebration of The Red Hat Society. Anyone making donations to The Next Step Home, a transitional home for women that offers hope, new skills and way back into society and sobriety, can have a Mother's Day card sent in honor or memory of a loved one.

Nancy June Brandon, who is coordinating the booth, was wearing two hats at a recent planning session, and yes, one of them is red.

"I'm here as a Red Hatter, but I'm also in the board for The Next Step Home," she said.

The Red Hat Society started 10 years ago, when Sue Ellen Cooper bought a vintage red fedora -- just for the fun of it. The hat was given, along with a poem called "Warning," to a friend of hers. The poem begins, "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple/With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me" and goes on to celebrate life after 50, and the joy of doing something -- just for the fun of it.

Cooper got such a good response from the gift, she gave another red hat and copy of the poem to another friend, and another, and before long, the group called themselves The Red Hat Society.

When asked what they do, the standard answer, according to the website, is "Nothing."

"Our main responsibility is to have fun! We see this group as an opportunity for those who have shouldered various responsibilities at home and in the community their whole lives, to say good-bye to burdensome responsibilities and obligations for a little while. This is the place to have fun and enjoy yourself," the website states.

The spirit of the group doesn't allow rules, and they pride themselves on "dis-organization," but there are some guidelines. More information can be found at www.redhatsociety.com.

One of those guidelines is the color code -- women 50 and over wear the purple and red. Younger women wear the lavender and pink -- and the day they get to graduate to the deeper hues becomes a fun celebration instead of the dreaded 5-0.

There are many, many Red Hatters in this area, and Cindy Stephenson hopes they all turn out for the celebration on the square.

"We want groups from all over to come," she said.

Of course, you don't have to be a Red Hatter to join in the fun. There will be a parade, music, food vendors, information booths and mule wagon rides. Held with the cooperation of Main Street Shelbyville, the event will also feature local businesses and many will have special deals and sidewalk sales during the day.

The Red Hat Society's 10th Anniversary will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the parade beginning at 11.

More food vendors and musical talent are encouraged to join in the fun and there are no vendor fees. For more information, call Stephenson at (316) 253-6267, Pat Macmillan at 685-8113, or Cindy Drake at 680-1070.

For an organization that celebrates deliberate "dis-organization," those plans are moving along smoothly.