So where are the Dream Squad Cast Members now?

[FaithTrustPixieDust]

I don't mean to pour salt on the wounds of those who never saw or received anything from the Dream Squad . . . but I thought it was a wonderful idea, and we always enjoyed spotting them and wondering what their next mission may be.

We saw them a few times with their prize patrol vests on, and we knew they were on their way to someone who was "in the right place at the right time." Even when they were not awarding prizes, they would walk around the parks as Super Greeters. They would talk to random guests and try to make their day magical in little ways . . .here's a pin, free snack, or the occasional front-of-the-line pass for a particular ride. Seems like a fabulous job to me!

So what happened the Dream Squad people after YOAMD wrapped up? Did they automatically get moved to Birthday Patrol?

[xoHelloKittyox]

I never got to see the Dream suqad :(
I hope they come around again :mickey:


As many times as I've been to Disney I've never heard of birthday patrol? whats up with that?

[FaithTrustPixieDust]

I meant the "What will you celebrate in 2009" theme. Not sure what the official lingo is. :mickey:

[Ian]

I don't believe the "What Will You Celebrate" campaign requires any special staff, so it's doubtful they were re-purposed that way.

My guess is they were absorbed into other areas. Disney is normally short staffed, although they have been talking hours reductions and layoffs lately so I suppose it's possible they just got the boot.

[LavaLamp]

Perhaps some of the dream squad members will become Peter Pan. I heard he likes to follow you around telling you that you can fly. Not sure if that was supposed to make my day more magical or not.

[JPL]

I actually had a few conversations with some Dream Squad Members on my December trip at the Animal kingdom and they confirmed that they will be moved into other areas of the company with many of them going back to their pre-dream Squad Positions.

[mouseketeer mom]

I loved seeing the dream squad. Up until our second to last day on one of our trips last year when the dream squad guy chatted us up to say that he just had given away the castle stay to a family standing in our exact spot 5 minutes ago, if only we had gotten there sooner! As he said he would've loved to have given the stay to a family like ours. It was an awful feeling. My DD was so upset, as she felt guilty as she was the one who pushed for that one last ride on Buzz. We assured her she did nothing wrong, but our encounter with Mr. Dream Squad felt horrible. I contacted Disney about this experience when we returned to let them know.

[crazyred11588]

I loved seeing the dream squad. Up until our second to last day on one of our trips last year when the dream squad guy chatted us up to say that he just had given away the castle stay to a family standing in our exact spot 5 minutes ago, if only we had gotten there sooner! As he said he would've loved to have given the stay to a family like ours. It was an awful feeling. My DD was so upset, as she felt guilty as she was the one who pushed for that one last ride on Buzz. We assured her she did nothing wrong, but our encounter with Mr. Dream Squad felt horrible. I contacted Disney about this experience when we returned to let them know.

wow. that would really stink! I'm sure he didn't mean to make your daughter feel bad though, in fact he probably didn't realize that some people would not be happy to hear that (I know I would be a little annoyed). In those cases ignorance is bliss right? Did you ever hear back from Disney?

[DizneyRox]

... My guess is they were absorbed into other areas. Disney is normally short staffed, although they have been talking hours reductions and layoffs lately so I suppose it's possible they just got the boot.
Yeah, I was going to say, they were probably in the unemployment queue.

Seriously, the good thing about many of the positions though, is it's fairly easy to just alter schedules and be absorbed into other areas. Some money is better than no money I guess.

[wilcat]

I do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's. That is one of the reasons we won't be visiting anytime soon. It is quite disturbing to know that couples who aren't able to have children are made to feel less than adequate. I do hope however that they did not loose their jobs after the YOMD ended and were absorbed back into the mix.

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Dream Squad was a TA (temporary assignment). When they took the position, they were guaranteed a spot back in their original line of business. But I have seen them since the new year, and they are essentially Super Greeters all the time, a branch of GR.

[ILoveLegos]

Along this line of thought - what will happen to the ultimate non-Disney-esque (I mean the position was filled through the john-q public and not among the ranks of Disney employees with a contest last year) coveted position of the Chief Magic Official (CMO)? Wasn't he supposed to be the head honcho of the YOAD Dream Squad "vested" prize patrol? Is he out of a position too now? That has to be an enormous let-down for that guy. :( I guess it was fun while it lasted though. :thumbsup:

[DisneyTiff]

We saw the dream squad many times, but never got a "wish". Everyone that we know that had gone to Disney during the "Year of a Million Dreams" got something (lanyards, fastpasses, etc.). It became a joke with my husband and me.

I hope the members of the dream squad are reassigned within WDW. They made many people happy.

[thumperbug]

we went 6 times during the 2 YOMD and never even saw and dream squad folks. Just lots with dream fast pass. In fact my BFF was there the same time on 2 of my trips and both times she won dream fast passes. Oh well.

We are back at WDW in Feb 09 and we will be celebrating being on vacation on my son's 7th birthday which is 10 days after we get back.

[mom2morgan]

I loved seeing the dream squad. Up until our second to last day on one of our trips last year when the dream squad guy chatted us up to say that he just had given away the castle stay to a family standing in our exact spot 5 minutes ago, if only we had gotten there sooner! As he said he would've loved to have given the stay to a family like ours. It was an awful feeling. My DD was so upset, as she felt guilty as she was the one who pushed for that one last ride on Buzz. We assured her she did nothing wrong, but our encounter with Mr. Dream Squad felt horrible. I contacted Disney about this experience when we returned to let them know.

OUCH! Hey, great news! You just won the lottery! You're a gazillionaire! oopss...sorry, those were last weeks numbers....
Seriously, what POSSIBLE good could come from telling someone they JUST MISSED a great prize? Did Disney respond to your comment?

[disneydeb]

We finally won Dream Fastpasses this past December.:party:

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Let me just say...the ONLY thing I wanted....was a pair of ears. That's all.

And I missed them once as a guest (not a morning person but this day I was up to meet villains at DHS) and tried to go back 3 times to get them. Each time, they had stopped passing them out for that frame.

To rub salt in an open wound, one of the last days in December they were handing them out at RPW when I was working and it was torture. I almost cried because I wanted them so badly.

Of course, as a CM, I technically couldn't accept the ears even if they did offer them to me (but they never checked the guest info anyways). Needless to say, once I get some money, I'm shopping on eBay.

[stitchaholic]

I
do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's.
i was there last year alone with my 2 children and we did not get any prizes either,however,i did see several young couples alone with those dream passes around their neck,i think that it was just a case of being in the right place at the right time.

[sneezyone]

here's my funny little story.

DH and I were on the look out for them last March. However, DH is a huge Phillies fan and one day he decided to go to Clearwater and he dropped me off at MK while he went to the game.

Lo and behold!

I was about to go to TSI and missed the first raft. I asked the CM about the paint brushes and she said "Tom didn't get to hide them this morning" so I decided not to go over.

As I went to leave a man in a vest pulled me aside and for a fleeting moment I thought I was in trouble or something!

then he pulled out a bag and said there was something in it for me.

I asked if Johnny Depp was in there and he laughed and gave me a fast pass.

Poor DH never got to have one, but that's what he gets for going to a ball game! lol!:funny:

[buzznwoodysmom]

I do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's. That is one of the reasons we won't be visiting anytime soon. It is quite disturbing to know that couples who aren't able to have children are made to feel less than adequate.

We have two young children (8&6) and visited 3 times during YOMD and didn't get one single "dream". One of the trips was for our sons' birthdays and even with their birthday pins we still never won anything. We just weren't ever in the right place at the right time. Which is more likely the same explination as to why you didn't win anything either. I don't think not having children has anything to do with it. We consider ourselves lucky to just be able to visit WDW as much as we do. We make our own "dreams and magic" happen when we go to WDW. Just being there with my family is enough of a prize for me. Sorry you felt that Disney discriminated against you.

[Catzle]

I don't think that not having kids is the reason you didn't get anything. We visited 19 days in two years and never once won a thing and we have two young children. But I did see a lot of adults with passes and ears et. and they had no children. I think it was being in the right place at the right time and we just never were. I would have to say that was the case with adults with no children.

[joelkfla]

I saw someone in a Dream Squad costume saying goodbye and giving out the souvenir pins to guests getting off the Backstage Magic bus yesterday afternoon, so it looks like some may be taking over some tour guide duties.

[Spaceship Tigger]

I do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's. That is one of the reasons we won't be visiting anytime soon. It is quite disturbing to know that couples who aren't able to have children are made to feel less than adequate. I do hope however that they did not loose their jobs after the YOMD ended and were absorbed back into the mix.

I don't believe Disney was being discriminatory in any way - I think it's all just luck. When our whole family took an 8 day trip last time out we got nothing. However, last summer DW and I were just stopping in at Downtown Disney for a few hours after a cruise from Port Canaveral and were called over by a Dream Squad to get the mickey ears. We were pretty surprised.

[mouseketeer mom]

wow. that would really stink! I'm sure he didn't mean to make your daughter feel bad though, in fact he probably didn't realize that some people would not be happy to hear that (I know I would be a little annoyed). In those cases ignorance is bliss right? Did you ever hear back from Disney?

I did hear back from Disney, who offered their apologies. The Dream squad member didn't seem mean spirited, he just seemed clueless, like he had no idea how what he was saying did not feel good., especially to a child. I was hoping another child wouldn't have to go thru the same situation we did., especially one who might be younger and not understand.

[indytraveler]

Like many of you I only saw the prize patrol once during my many visits. They were handing out Mickey Ears on Aladdin so we quickly got in line. However, by the time we got to the front of the line they weren't handing out the ears anymore.
But they were still there and they started passing out Fast Passes instead. So we won those instead.

Right Place - Right Time

[wilcat]

Thanks, you have made me feel a lot better. I really didn't want to feel that we were being singled out and discrimintated against and your posts helped to sort that out. There was one instance though when a Dream Squad member came right up to us and asked us if we had any children. We told him no and he said he was on the lookout for a family and walked off. I did not get his name or I would have written to Disney about him. That was why I was feeling the way I was. Thanks to my fellow Intercotee's for helping to brighten up my day. I am really glad the Dream Squad members were able to keep their jobs. As my DH has lost his job I know what a hardship being laid off can be and don't wish it on anyone.

[FaithTrustPixieDust]

Dream Squad was a TA (temporary assignment). When they took the position, they were guaranteed a spot back in their original line of business. But I have seen them since the new year, and they are essentially Super Greeters all the time, a branch of GR.


This is good to hear. I'm glad they kept the idea of "Super Greeter" around. Sounds like a pretty fun job to me!!! :mickey:

[SurferStitch]

We saw the dream squad many times, but never got a "wish". Everyone that we know that had gone to Disney during the "Year of a Million Dreams" got something (lanyards, fastpasses, etc.). It became a joke with my husband and me.

Ha! You sound exactly like DH and myself! Saw them many times, never won anything, and several times we were the first people in a line or group AFTER the last item was given out (ears, lanyards, etc.).

We got so many more wishes and treats from just regular CM's (certificates, pins, food, upgrade to concierg at GF, front-of-line passes, instant FP's, free ride photos, etc.). Those meant a lot more to us than just being at the right place at the right time....more magical. :cloud9:

[Ian]

I do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's. That is one of the reasons we won't be visiting anytime soon. It is quite disturbing to know that couples who aren't able to have children are made to feel less than adequate. I do hope however that they did not loose their jobs after the YOMD ended and were absorbed back into the mix.Actually, the winners were selected completely at random, so don't feel bad.

You weren't discriminated against ... you just have really bad luck. ;)

[Crow]

i hadnt seen them until my last trip....
i was solo, had just found the paintbrush on Tom Sawyer Island & was told to turn it in when i got off the raft...as i was going across I saw a bunch of CMS and started wondering...it was the dream squad w Dream Fastpasses. so i got a fastpass for the paintbrush and a Dream Fastpass...though I didnt need fastpasses on all of the rides...
then a few days later i walked into One Mans Dream & got Dream Fastpass again.
I still have them and am wondering if I should keep them.

[MickeyChick]

I was at WDW twice last year- during the first trip, with my two sons, I met and talked to a Dream Team member for half an hour about pin trading. I didn't know she was Dream Squad at the time. She never indicated what her role was or gave us anything beyond an explanation of pin trading.

During the second trip with just my sweetie and me we ran into a Dream Squad member in the Maharajah Jungle Trek. We had a long conversation about our trip and he asked if we'd been on EE yet. We said no, that we wanted to, but the fastpasses were all given out and there was a 2 hour wait and we needed to leave to make the Spirit of Aloha dinner that night. He took us straight to the front of the line at EE and bought us the photo of our descent! It was so cool.

A second encounter on that trip was randomly running into Captain Jessica Sparrow holding an Intercot sign in Epcot...

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

A second encounter on that trip was randomly running into Captain Jessica Sparrow holding an Intercot sign in Epcot...

You considered that a dream? LOL. Although it was fun, especially since our meet-up was so small. I'll make a bigger one next time I go.

[Klassyears]

I do have to say that DH and I felt slighted during our December trip. We did run into the Dream Squad members quite a few times, but when they saw it was only a couple they headed the other way. I really felt like Disney doesn't care for couples only family's. That is one of the reasons we won't be visiting anytime soon. It is quite disturbing to know that couples who aren't able to have children are made to feel less than adequate. I do hope however that they did not loose their jobs after the YOMD ended and were absorbed back into the mix.

WOW---I have to say that THIS is the saddest thing I have ever read in association with WDW. A real debby downer situation, as I know for a fact that (A) DW does not purposefully ignore couples, and (B) how would they know you are UNABLE to have children? Maybe you left the kids at home this visit, etc, etc?

I tihnk you took it a tad too personally. I personally have never had ANYTHING special happen to me there, but that does not diminish my vacation in any way. Any pixie dust thrown my way would be EXTRA icing, not an entitlement.

Since you won't be returning to Disney for what I think is a totally bonehead reason, I will take the opportunity to make sure I take another vacation in your stead! Thanks! 'lol':marg::party:

[ginger19]

Thanks, you have made me feel a lot better. I really didn't want to feel that we were being singled out and discrimintated against and your posts helped to sort that out. There was one instance though when a Dream Squad member came right up to us and asked us if we had any children. We told him no and he said he was on the lookout for a family and walked off. I did not get his name or I would have written to Disney about him. That was why I was feeling the way I was. Thanks to my fellow Intercotee's for helping to brighten up my day. I am really glad the Dream Squad members were able to keep their jobs. As my DH has lost his job I know what a hardship being laid off can be and don't wish it on anyone.

I don't think they discriminate against non-families at all. I have me, DH, a little boy and a little girl. We went 4 times during the promotion and did not get anything until our very last day on the last trip where we got a water for each of us. It definitely seemed right place right time as we saw all different types of groups with prizes.

[mermaidmarian]

I wonder why Dream Squad could not have continued on as a permanent fixture in the Parks. I can't imagine, other than the staffing, it was a real budget buster. Making dreams come true is part of the Disney ethos - YOAMD or not. I think it should have been retained.

[princessgirls]

The Dream Squad...

Back to their old jobs, no doubt!

Dreaming of life on a segway and giving out prizes.

Julie:mickey:

[disneyjoe]

Let me just say...the ONLY thing I wanted....was a pair of ears. That's all.

And I missed them once as a guest (not a morning person but this day I was up to meet villains at DHS) and tried to go back 3 times to get them. Each time, they had stopped passing them out for that frame.

To rub salt in an open wound, one of the last days in December they were handing them out at RPW when I was working and it was torture. I almost cried because I wanted them so badly.

Of course, as a CM, I technically couldn't accept the ears even if they did offer them to me (but they never checked the guest info anyways). Needless to say, once I get some money, I'm shopping on eBay.

Our family and another went to disney together last year. The only day we split up we ended up running into the Dream Squad and all got ears. Our friends that same day came back with the fast passes. Ongoing joke about us being apart but all being special!

The reason I quoted you Jessica is that I would bring you a set of ears if you really want them. I don't really think we need four sets. If you really want them, message me and I will bring them with me in a couple weeks when we are down there again!

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

The reason I quoted you Jessica is that I would bring you a set of ears if you really want them. I don't really think we need four sets. If you really want them, message me and I will bring them with me in a couple weeks when we are down there again!

Hehe, it's okay. I couldn't accept them without feeling really guilty about it. You won them and they are a part of a promotion that is no longer running. You should hold onto them because you can't get them anymore. But I appreciate the offer. I'll get pair eventually...eBay is a wonderful place sometimes.

[mrmcgiv]

we went twice duing YOMD and never got anything either...never saw them. We had two kids 4 and 7. If they saw us..nothign was coming our way. Oh well!