Loveable Mrs. Roper look-alikes storm downtown Orillia

Ram's Rodeo had clear skies for the western fair.

Audra Terry got the idea whilst eating lunch with her cousin in Chilliwack, BC.

It wasn’t just the that lunch was great: it was the gaggle of Mrs. Ropers walking down the street that caught her eye.

When she found out it was for a charitable fundraiser based on the Three’s Company character Helen Roper (’77 – ’79) she was hooked.

“I thought I could get 10 of my closest friends together and raise $500 and do it as a fundraiser for a local charity,” Terry said.

Little did she know she would have 70 registered participants coming in from Barrie, Innisfil, Alliston, and Orillia to join the curly-red haired, gaudily dressed women for a good cause.

Seventeen of Orillia’s downtown stores participated in the inaugural Mrs. Roper Romp for Mariposa House Hospice.

Dressed like 70-era divas, they raised $10,407.

“We brought the sunshine to the sunshine city, and I am overwhelmed by the generosity of our community,” Terry said.

“This will be matched by the JBS Foundation that is matching up to $200,000 for Mariposa House Hospice’s ongoing capital expansion campaign,” said Kandas Bartlett with Mariposa House Hospice.