By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

RIVER RIDGE – Metairie’s Krewe of Rhea will have more than a bit of River Parishes flavor this year as three St. Charles Catholic High School graduates will serve as krewe royalty this year.

Tania San Andres, Amy Wombles and Renee Griffin have been friends since their days at St. Joan of Arc Catholic School in LaPlace, so when San Andres’ cousin, who is the krewe’s king this year, chose her as his queen, she knew just who to draft as her maids.

Facebook has played a big role in keeping the three friends in

touch as only Wombles still calls LaPlace home. San Andres now

lives in Metairie, and Griffin now lives in Denham Springs. Unsurprisingly, talk of Griffin and Wombles serving as maids also got started on the social networking site.

San Andres said she did not think they would want to take part, and the two ladies admitted they had their reservations at first, but in the end the choice was clear.

“My Mom said, ‘You have to do it,’” said Griffin.

Wombles has also been encouraged by support from her family, especially her husband, Tyce, who she said has been so supportive he even waited in traffic for two hours on Christmas Eve to buy his wife the perfect shoes to match the dress she will be wearing for krewe events.

For San Andres the choice was even more obvious.

“I love Mardi Gras,” she said. “As soon as I hear ‘King’s Night,’ I know it’s time for king cake and Mardi Gras.”

She continued, “Being from New Orleans, it’s a rite of passage.”

San Andres said she was honored by the appointment but added, “I kind of always fancied myself a queen. Now it’s official.”

While the experience of riding with a krewe will be a first for all three women, they were all involved in the St. Joan of Arc carnival ball in one way or another while they were students there. But that experience did little to prepare them for the year’s worth of planning that goes into putting on a professional parade.

“We’ve been doing this since March of last year,” said Wombles, adding, “We’ve kind of done most of the work already.”

The trio said that once the holiday season hit, things really kicked into high gear. While some throws still need to be bought, their schedule now mostly consists of the ball, parties and the parade itself.

Those events, however, come with their own unique challenges, such as getting into their elaborate dresses.

Said Wombles, “My dress is velvet. It broke two hangers already.”

She added that the accompanying collars add to the weight of the outfit and that each will have to be tied into her costume.

All of the work and trouble will fade into the background today when the threesome’s titles become official at Rhea’s annual ball.

Adding to the fun is the fact that they get to go through the whole experience with each other.

“It’s kind of fun doing it together,” said Griffin.

They are also pleased with the krewe itself.

“It’s a neat organization,” said Wombles. “It’s been around a long time.”

Rhea was founded in 1969. At that time, it was an all female krewe but has since opened its doors to men.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Metairie parade. To celebrate the event, riders will be throwing special ruby red cups emblazoned with the likenesses of this year’s royalty.

The parade will take place along the traditional Metairie route at 2 p.m. on Feb. 27. It will coincide with Metairie’s popular “Family Gras” event.