Being a mermaid a family tradition for teen

WEEKI WACHEE –
Madison Burich loves to talk about her earliest memories of her parents.

They spent a lot of time underwater.

Some of the people she meets are entertained by her stories. Others are befuddled.

During her first year at Florida State University, she told one of her new friends her mother was a mermaid and her dad was a prince.

“Um, are you a little crazy?” her friend asked her.

Burich, 18, grew up in a cottage at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park. Her mother, Kim Burich, was first hired as a mermaid in 1980 and remained one for 20 years.

Burich will continue the family legacy. She was hired earlier this month to be a Weeki Wachee mermaid.

“It was always in my head,” she said of her new job. “I had always wanted to do it. I realized a while back I was going to need a summer job. So I thought, ‘Why not?'”

Burich will begin her sophomore year at FSU in August. She plans to double major in political science and international relations. She’s also considering law school.

All she cares about this summer is the work.

Her parents knew the day would come.

“They weren’t surprised at all,” Burich said recalling the moment she told them she wanted a tryout at Weeki Wachee. “I’ve been in a tail since I was like 4.”

Mermaid life was actually engrained in her at birth. She is named after Darryl Hannah’s character in the film “Splash.”

“We figured if we named her Ariel (from Disney’s “The Little Mermaid”) it would be too transparent,” said her father.

Kim Burich, 48, became a general manager and minority owner of the park and also was elected mayor of Weeki Wachee. She hired her daughter’s boss, not to mention current Mayor Robyn Anderson.

Kim Burich’s husband, Matt, was a prince and performed with her. That was how the two met.

The plan Thursday was for Madison Burich’s parents to see her swimming in front of them while they sat in the underwater theater. At the last minute, the retired mermaid decided to don the tail again.

The father stayed inside and watched mother and daughter swim together. The younger Burich is scuba certified and athletically gifted, but using the handheld hoses can be tricky without the hundreds of hours of required experience.

Her mother hadn’t used them in 10 years.

If they had any struggles, they hid them. Their movements were effortless. They sat on the anchor prop and waved. They swam to the glass and blew kisses.

Kim Burich, still noticeably fit like a swimmer, climbed out of the water and onto the ramp. She was breathing heavy. After sliding out of her mermaid tail, she talked about returning to the spring and reliving her old job.

“That was tough,” she said laughing and shaking her head, “but it was exciting.”

Muscle memory kicked in immediately, but the breathing was a challenge. When the body needs air, it rises toward the surface. She struggled mostly with buoyancy, but those in the theater didn’t notice.

Matt Burich watched from the front row. He got lost in the moment. He didn’t hear the clicking cameras behind him. All he noticed was what was in front of him.

“It was really surreal,” he said. “They looked so similar.”

A photo was taken of the Burich family 16 years ago in the sand at Buccaneer Bay. Madison Burich was 2 years old and sitting on her father’s knee. She was wearing a purple mermaid tail.

The three of them reenacted the photo Thursday morning.

The park has added several new features and is now owned by the state. All of the employees wear uniforms. Otherwise, not much has changed since the three of them lived there.

The family moved to a bigger house off the property in the mid-1990s, but Kim Burich remained for a few more years as general manager. She stepped down soon after her son was born. Matt Burich is now a successful homebuilder. The family lives in Crystal River.

While at the park Thursday, the couple’s thoughts often drifted toward their shared experiences at Weeki Wachee.

The first time they filed a tax return while husband and wife, she filled out the occupation space with “mermaid.” He jotted down “merman.”

“I said to her, ‘You know, we’re going to get audited,” he said.

He was right.

Madison Burich had high hopes about her new employment. She said the past few weeks have exceeded her lofty expectations.

There is no hazing the new pupil. There’s no tough love.

“It’s all so easygoing here,” she said. “They’re all here to help you. They knew what it was like starting out.”

The process from trainee to novice to full-fledged mermaid typically takes a year. With her Scuba background, Burich is ahead in the game. She also has her own personal tutor at home.

“Oh, I just want to be in there,” she said looking through the glass of the underwater theater.

She’s already anticipating her first performance in front of her family.

“This is a little dramatic, but I think my destiny has been fulfilled,” Burich said. “I finally got to do what I was meant to do when I was born.”

Reporter Tony Holt can be reached at (352) 544-5283.