They flipped for each other!
TAMPA, FL – 28-year-old Susan Wright, a veteran dolphin trainer at Ocean Realm, recently requested two weeks off to go on her honeymoon. A discerning dater, Susan met her husband while working together at the world-famous marine park.
“I’ve never been so happy,” said Wright. “I was always worried I’d never meet ‘the one’ but no doubt about it. Squeaky is it.”
Squeaky is also something else: a bottle-nosed dolphin.
“I’ve spent my whole life studying dolphin communication,” said Wright. “So when Squeaky rose up on his tail, pointed at me with one flipper and fanned his face. It made my heart swoon.”
Squeaky proposed during a matinee show in the famous World Pool, which has the globe painted on the walls and bottom. When Susan accepted, Squeaky scooped her onto his back and took her around the world. The audience was delighted with the enthusiastic victory lap.
MAKING IT WORK
The manager of Ocean Realm, Rico Rifle, agreed to give Wright time off for her honeymoon – but on one condition.
“It was the height of the tourist season and losing my best trainer for two weeks was really inconvenient,” said Rifle. “All I asked in return was the wedding take place in the World pool at Ocean Realm. I knew the publicity would be great for our park. And it would be wonderful for Squeaky and Susan.”
Susan contacted her family for their approval and to make sure that they all could be present for the ceremony. Squeaky wanted her family to be at the ceremony as well. That was more of a challenge and most of his family members couldn’t make it.
“The dolphin school was in the Gulf of Mexico that time of the year,” said Wright. “So squeaky recorded a message summoning them to the event and we had a plane drop an acoustic buoy in the water.”
The dolphins leaped up and down, indicating to the aircraft that they got the message.
PLANNING THE WEDDING
Back in Florida, the couple made key decisions. Chief among these was who would perform the ceremony.
“I wanted a priest,” said Wright. But Squeaky wanted a more traditional dolphin wedding, including a Fish Minister and several gigantic leaps out of the water.”
“In the end, we decided to go with just the fish when the priest suggested baptizing the dolphins first, Susan said. “Even though we would be in a pool, dolphins are party animals. I knew it would be tough getting them to sit through one ceremony, let alone two.”
The wedding was a beautiful affair, with Wright responding to the Minister Fish in squeaky dolphinese. The Squeakys went to the Bahamas for their honeymoon.
“We had a room with a gigantic bathtub and a water bed,” Susan said. “It was very romantic. We rarely left the room.” She blushed, “the people in the adjoining room complained of the noises. But we were really enjoying ourselves and thrilled that we each found our soul mate.
Susan would love to have kids or dolphins. “We’d love to have a family.”
Weekly World News wishes the happy couple a lifetime of joyful splashing.
