Nashauna Drumond, Lifestyle Coordinator

Always a winner with her hats, here she placed 3rd at the 2007 Hats On To Easter fund-raising brunch. - Photos by Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer

Some women have a weakness for shoes, others for handbags. But, for Gerthlyn Holman it's hats. "I go to church almost every Sunday and I'm a Baptist and a country girl so I have loved hats since I was a teenager," she said, her voice laced with humour.

You will never see this Kiwanian going to her projects without her hat. Even as a teen, she had a passion for them and even won a prize at the Frome Agricultural show in Westmoreland for, you guessed it, her hat. "Because I'm a Baptist, I stick to the tradition. But if you invite me to a brunch, I'm going to wear a hat. I just love hats; it's getting to the point where I don't have space to put them." Having run out of space in her closet, she has moved them into another room for storage and in the process, has lost count of just how many she has. "Honestly, I don't know how many I have but it's more than 30."

Her love affair with hats was evident at the recent Hats off to Easter show when she modelled a few from her extensive collection.

Wide-brimmed hats

Left: Ever regal she has a hat for every occasion Right: Whatever the occasion, Gerthlyn Holman has a hat ready to wear. - JIS

Of her many hats, Holman's preference are those with wide brims. For her, no outfit seems complete without one. "I find it makes a difference." And so, this Easter, and at upcoming events, Gerthlyn Holman will be in one of her many hats. "I love hats and my mother, who is still alive, loves them too. It's something I'll always wear. I'm happy with them. More of us should get involved in putting on hats and going to church. I won't change or get rid of my hats, but they are getting expensive," she notes. Hats off to you Gerthlyn.

Gerthlyn loves wide-brimmed hats. Here she is in 2007 in her 'Cricket World Cup hat'.