Life as a mermaid

Photo shows mermaid Carol Catan visiting the disabled Child Care association (AACD) in Sao Paulo, Brazil June 8, 2017. (Photo: CFP) Children with disabilities in Brazil are getting an emotional lift from a mythical creature of the sea: a mermaid. Carol Catan has earned her living portraying a mermaid and teaching mermaiding after she left her job of 10 years as a veterinarian.She is paid for performing but donates her time at hospitals. Positioned in a wheelchair so that wheelchair-bound children can relate to her, Catan says volunteering at hospitals is among her most rewarding experiences. Dressed in costume with a long, shiny green tail, she chats with young patients and “they feel included, cherished.”

Photo shows mermaid Carol Catan unpacking her costume during a visit with children at she visits the Disabled Child Care Association (AACD) in Sao Paulo, Brazil June 8, 2017. (Photo: CFP) Children with disabilities in Brazil are getting an emotional lift from a mythical creature of the sea: a mermaid. Carol Catan has earned her living portraying a mermaid and teaching mermaiding after she left her job of 10 years as a veterinarian.She is paid for performing but donates her time at hospitals. Positioned in a wheelchair so that wheelchair-bound children can relate to her, Catan says volunteering at hospitals is among her most rewarding experiences. Dressed in costume with a long, shiny green tail, she chats with young patients and “they feel included, cherished.”