Bertha Komor patiently awaited the accomplishment of her goal. The 104-year-old had desired to meet and hold a penguin ever since she was a small kid.

She never imagined it would come true, but the Twilight Wish Foundation, the Mystic Aquarium, and her caregivers at the Village Gate Farmington retirement residence in Connecticut made it possible.

After getting to pet Red Green, the aquarium’s oldest African penguin (at 35 years old), Komor told NECN, ‘I never dreamed it would happen.’ She said, ‘I didn’t expect this — [it’s] great.’

The ‘greatest part was touching him and seeing him close up,’ according to Komor.

Karen Rivkin, Komor’s granddaughter, who was present for the historic occasion with her grandmother, told NECN, ‘I’m just so pleased for her. I’m just so glad she got her wish fulfilled and that she’s been a part of our lives for so long.’