The second annual “Mr. & Mrs. Roper Romp” was held last Friday in downtown Centralia.
The event raised money for Carly's Closet, a local nonprofit that supplies clothes and school supplies to elementary school students in Lewis County. The nonprofit is named for Carly King, a White Pass School District graduate who died of a rare form of cancer in the summer of 2023. She was 22.
Mrs. Roper impersonator events, better known as “Mrs. Roper Romps,” are in honor of Helen Roper, a character from the TV sitcom “Three's Company” that aired on ABC, following three single roommates who live together in an apartment complex owned by Roper and her husband.
Helen and her impersonators dress in 70s style jewelry, red curly wigs and bright kaftans, as actress Audra Lindley portrayed her from 1977 to 1984. Some romp attendees even carry cardboard cutouts of Helen’s husband, Stanley.
Roper Romps began in 2013, initially as a parade in New Orleans at the LGBTQ+ celebration Southern Decadence, according to an article from NPR.
"New Orleans is where it occurred first and then San Diego,” Jen Lewis, one of the “founding Helens” of the Ypsilanti romp, said in the article. “We just got together and made it happen here.”
Since then, Mrs. Roper Romps have spread to dozens of cities across the U.S. and Canada, including Seattle; North Little Rock, Arizona; Front Royal, Virginia; and Topeka, Kansas; and now here in Centralia.
The Centralia event included an estimated 175 participants this year.
Attendees of this year’s Roper Romp wore kaftan and wigs for their night out on the town, and posed in front of a backdrop for a photo op as well as entered a raffle for a chance to win prizes donated by local businesses. From there, they continued their romp through downtown Centralia visiting participating stores, restaurants, and bars.
Carly’s Closet has partnered with 17 schools in and around the Lewis County area and has donated over 2,000 articles of clothing, according to its website at https://tinyurl.com/3fmr42ak.
Carly’s Closet’s vision is to reach all schools in Lewis County, ensuring that every child has access to essential clothing.
“We believe that every child deserves to feel comfortable and confident in their clothes,” Carly’s Closet’s website stated. “Through our expansion efforts, we strive to help these schools create a nurturing environment and empower children to succeed academically and socially.”
