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VIRGINIA BEACH As I entered the room at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, the upbeat sounds of a jazz quartet caught my ear. They made me want to shake a white handkerchief in the air to the beat. I settled on a two-step.

It set my mood for a Saturday afternoon of fruity teas, finger foods and fashion, the Virginia Beach History Museums Elegance & DiviniTea.

This was the latest in the museums annual tea events. The first, in December, was Victorian themed, with Christmas carolers in ankle-length skirts and festive capes. This tea, on May 14, was hat-inspired and grounded in African and African American culture.

It just seems to fit what we are the Virginia Beach History Museums and Cultural Affairs, the museums director, Annmarie Reiley-Kay.

One of the partnering organizations for the event was the Princess Anne County Training School-Union Kempsville High School Alumni and Friends Association, the only school for Black people in what was then Princess Anne County. Black and white images from the graduating classes decorated the lobby. In the tea room, women greeted each other with colorful fascinators pinned behind their ears, and purple hats with wide brims and matching bows set high on their foreheads.

Gathering for the tea. (Bill Tiernan/Freelance)

Some tables included vintage headdresses, provided by the Little Theatre of Virginia Beach, on top of the floral arrangements. Other centerpieces of greenery, babys breath and pops of color from carnations also made me smile.

In the center of the room, seven strobe bars formed a runway. As I took my seat, I admired the hats in the room, such as a yellow satin pleated hat with an inner diamond circle. Another was turquoise with a matching ribbon, and another was pink felt with three strings of pearls wrapped around the band.

Gold tablecloths draped each four-seat table. An orange vanilla cream rooibos tea bag sat in flowery china cups, and a watermelon hibiscus tea bag and Ceylon black tea bag waited on the saucers. A silver-plated tea bag holder was included to hold the used teabags. The organizers thought of every little detail, including the gold plastic utensils wrapped in thick white napkins with a gold paper band to secure them.

The table couldnt hold any more goodies, so vibrant yellow and purple church fans, displaying the program on one side and the tea menu with their histories on the other, waited on the cushioned chairs.

With host Bonita Billingsley Harris at left, Otealia Jennings of Virginia Beach sings "America the Beautiful" at the beginning of the Elegance & DiviniTea event. (Bill Tiernan/Freelance)

I started with my rooibos. It had a subtle flavor profile with delicate vanilla aromatics. The menu contained a brief history. Rooibos, or red bush, is a herb native to South Africa. It was cultivated by the indigenous bushmen, the Khoisan people, and has been cultivated for more than 300 years. Rooibos began to rise in commercial popularity between 1904 and 1968. It could barely be imported to the United States before 2000 because of sanctions during South Africas segregationist apartheid era.

The timing was perfect. Model Mikel Fuller of the ss community which practices the religion and spirituality of the Yoruba of West Africa hit the runway with a showstopper. She wore a stunning tall, red Nigerian head wrap called a gele. Golden tones reflected in the light as she sashayed down the runway.

Professor Omiyemi Artisia Green from William & Mary, a priestess for the ss spiritual community of Hampton Roads, walked to the podium in her green gele. She talked about the history of the gele. In Africa, a gele symbolizes social status. African Americans now wear the head wrap or hat to connect to their spiritual crown.

The program host, Bonita Billingsley Harris, reminded the audience of the adage: The higher the hat, the closer to God.

The name of the event became clearer and aligned with the purpose elegance and divinity.

Models from Teens with a Purpose wore derby and church hats, a few vintage offerings from the Little Theatre. Then Stark & Legum, one of the oldest local haberdashers, showcased mens and womens hats.

They ranged from black or white fedoras with decorative bands to a summertime panama hat with blue-black ribbon a brown suede cowboy hat. If the leading male model looked familiar to some, it was the longtime area coach Elisha Cadillac Harris, and husband of the host.

Zion Smith Designs featured some incredible pieces, giving us a peek into the future of headwear. The crowd admired a model wearing the red satin ribbon all-year material accented with Swarovski crystals. I pulled out my camera.

I was seeing red and sipping it. I switched my tea to the watermelon hibiscus with its ruby liquor, my favorite of the day. It gave me subtle sweet notes with a juicy tart finish. The Hibiscus sabdariffa is native to North Africa, Southeast Asia and grows in tropical climates. In some African countries, its used for medicinal purposes. Its popular in West Africa, Central Africa and the diaspora. Hibiscus plants were on ships with enslaved Africans in the 1500s.

As the event ended, people collected their dessert boxes: a strawberry lemon tart with lemon cream, fresh strawberries and whipped cream, and a French macaron, perfect bites to end an afternoon tea. The lightly sweetened macaron, with its buttery crust, would have complemented the earthy boldness of a cup of the Ceylon black tea.

Served along with three kinds of tea and a catered boxed lunch: history and abundant creativity. Church fans, arrayed on each chair, had held the menus. (Bill Tiernan/Freelance)

As I reflected on the days event, I plotted my order of indulgence for the savory boxed lunches, which contained traditional tea party favorites. I enjoyed the freshness of the chicken salad on wheat bread. The roast beef on a mini brioche with cranberry chutney tasted like quality beef meeting a hint of sweetness. I loved the smoked salmon salad with fresh dill on wheat bread so much that I went to the companys website to see if it was a regular menu item. No such luck. I savored the fresh, smooth, herbaceous bite. The cucumber and cream cheese with fresh chives on white bread didnt disappoint my palate either. It had a thin layer of creaminess with a little crunch. Then I tried a moist blueberry scone with its burst of fruity flavor.

Hillary Plate, the cultural program and grants coordinator for the Virginia Beach Cultural Affairs Department, wants a tea series with a taste of history that brings the community together. She accomplished this with Elegance and DiviniTea.

Rekaya Gibson, rekaya.gibson@virginiamedia.com, 754-295-8809

The rest is here:
Tea, hats and history: Women gather to celebrate all three at Elegance & DiviniTea - The Virginian-Pilot