By Michele Day
Enquirer contributor

Pat Gullett arrives for her weekly girlfriends lunch at 11:30 a.m., right on time. The Ya-Yas expect her to be prompt. She's their leader - the one who arranges the lunches, trips and birthday dinners. "Sometimes, I get overburdened with the responsibility," she confides. "But they all tell me I do it so well."

Debbie Detmer arrives, followed by Henrietta Hill, better known as Henry. Tammy Williams - the youngest at age 41 - arrives to a greeting of "Theeeereeee's our baby." Mary Beth Rebold is absent because of a family commitment, and Shelley Stein , is running late. .

Room for one more

What's now the Ya-Ya group predates the novel Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. It began in 1990 when Cincinnati Bell transferred Henry, Debbie, Shelley and Pat to Cincinnati Bell Information Systems (now Convergys) to work on a project. Office space was at a premium, so the company put the four women, along with Tammy, a new employee, in one small office with five desks, five bookcases and five computers.

"We're talking a 10-by-10 office," Tammy interjects.

But the cramped quarters didn't bother them. "It was good for our mental health to be together," Henry says. "It helped us grow."

The weekly lunches began soon after - 11:30 a.m. Wednesdays at Barleycorn's on Sixth Street, downtown. They were casual: Come if you can.

Room for differences, too

The Ya-Yas spent five months in that shared office, their bond strengthening every day.

So when the company began moving the women to other assignments, the friendship continued. They adopted the Ya-Ya name after reading the book .

"As the years go on, the bond gets stronger," says Pat. "There's none of the petty stuff that a lot of times happens when women get together.."

The Ya-Yas are even making plans for staying together in their senior years.

"Debbie and Shelley and I have been to Florida so many times that we want to get a condo where the girls can come down," Pat says. "