Hats off to the senior dance

As Fleta Carol swirled around the dance floor last week, it was her head that drew the eye first.

Easter eggs dangled from the brim of her brightly colored hat, and a large stuffed blue and white toy bird perched high above the eggs and bright yellow paper tendrils.

Carol wasn't the only one with a bird on her head. Bette Upton's straw hat featured a garland of flowers with a tiny, but more realistic-looking, redbird on top.

Carol and Upton took first- and second place in the annual hat contest at the Senior Dance April 17 at the Cloquet VFW, where polka legend Florian Chmielewski and bandmates entertained a lively crowd for an afternoon of dancing, fun and companionship.

The dancers and music lovers didn't limit themselves to Easter bonnets, although those were the most abundant hats at the dance, which is held twice a month. (For details, look for the senior dance and other events at the VFW listed in the Bulletin Board each week.)

Third-place winner Marilyn Kiehl put on her best crocheted Schmidt beer hat, while Larry Johnson sported bunny ears on his baseball cap, which read: Made in America with "Swedish" parts.

Keeping with the theme, his shirt asked onlookers: If you don't talk to your kids about lutefisk, who will?