The Mermaids Of Weeki Wachee Springs Are Making Their Living Under The Sea

When you declare your college major, there’s no box you can check to become a professional cat cuddler, ice cream taste tester, or cat video maker. Heck, you probably never even believed those kinds of careers could exist — but they do. In Elite Daily’s new series, I Have The Job You Want, we’re bringing you all the details on what it’s like to work in some of the most ridiculous, unbelievable, and totally envy-inducing fields you never thought possible. These are #careergoals, for real.

It’s always a sad moment, somewhere in the vicinity of first grade, when you realize that, no, being a mermaid isn’t a valid career option. As it turns out, though, there are a few women who don’t seem to have gotten the memo, and they’re all based down in Florida, where the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs State Park are living out your underwater dreams.

The mermaids have been putting the park, and its natural spring, on the map as a tourist attraction for over 70 years. Since their start in 1947, the famous mermaids have performed underwater shows in the park’s natural spring, met with fans, and even traveled away from their spring to perform in enclosed aquariums. But while the mermaids have been at Weeki Wachee for seven decades, Kourtney Ellinghuysen has only been a Weeki Wachee mermaid for about two years. The 21-year-old has been part of the Weeki Wachee team, working full-time as a mermaid, since the summer of 2016. And it’s been two years of pure magic, by the looks of things.

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