People at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church on Signal Mountain call her “The Hat Lady.” She even has the words “hat lady” in her email address.
Betty Ewing, 89, stands only 4 feet, 10 inches tall, but she likes to top off her silhouette with a colorful hat. And she has plenty to choose from. A closet in her townhouse is home to 60 hats, so she can go a whole year of Sundays without wearing the same hat twice.
“Our church has a little thrift shop across the street,” the petite grandmother says. “Everybody is waiting for me to die so they can get some of my hats.”
Friends have asked to borrow her hats for Kentucky Derby trips and tea parties. If someone says they don’t think they can pull off wearing a hat, Ewing offers to shop with them for something that fits their personal style.