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OdySea Aquarium hosts dance party for Taylor Swift fans with special needs

A small group of Swiftie fans gathered at OdySea Aquarium in Scottsdale for a dance party to celebrate Swift and another tough chick: Rosie, the penguin!

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Taylor Swift fans are counting down to Friday, March 17, the kick-off of her 35-city in Glendale, Ariz. 

On Thursday, a small group of Swiftie fans gathered at OdySea Aquarium in Scottsdale for a dance party to celebrate Swift and another tough chick: Rosie, the penguin!

Rosie is OdySea Aquarium’s lovable, disabled African penguin who shares the same birthday as Swift, December 13. Aquarium officials said Rosie, like Swift, is strong, independent, and possesses a can-do attitude – all traits she built while in rehabilitation due to her skeletal abnormalities, found shortly after she hatched in 2019.

Credit: OdySea Aquarium

Eleven Valley children/adults with disabilities/special needs who wrote to Rosie were specifically chosen to attend the Dance Party, along with their immediate family or friends, officials said.

The attendees ranged in age from 4 – 40 years old, both male and female, and are physically disabled or have one (or more) of the following: cerebral palsy, pulmonary hypertension, autism/sensory processing disorder, developmental delays, cognitive challenges/special needs, down syndrome, or cystic fibrosis.

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