Hats off to CMs

[MrPeetrie]

I just returned from 10 beautiful days in Walt Disney World. I will give detailed trip report, but I must make a comment about CMs, and one in particular.

All CMs were great! Super job. We all felt so special. But there is once CM that went above and beyond.

My DD9 is a HUGE Merida fan. (I cannot emphasize enough how huge.) Prior to us leaving for our trip, she practiced her "archery" because she knew there were archery lessons in the Merida Meet & Greet. (She didn't want to disappoint her.)

Because my DD is unusually anxious, she became unsure if she wanted to even meet her, so on our first day in the Magic Kingdom we weren't seeking Merida out. If we came upon her, so be it.

We went to lunch at Cosmic Rays and she became very quiet. I asked her what was wrong and she pointed outside. The Merida Meet & Greet was right there.

After lunch, we went outside and got in line. I could see how nevous she was. Merida wasn't there yet and she tried to persuade me to leave so she wouldn't "waste our trip, waiting for her."

Finally, Merida came and the line began to move. I watched as Merida met each little girl. It was pretty much the same. She'd meet her and give her a hug, pose for a picture, and say goodbye. This went on for 10 minutes. At last, it was my daughter's turn.

For some reason, Merida really took to my daughter. (Maybe it was because she had a Merida shirt on, was holding a Merida doll, and had Merida pins on her lanyard.) They talked briefly, then she took my daughter by her hand and led her to a rock where they sat and talked some more. She told a story of getting her brush stuck in her hair and trying to keep that information from her mother. They looked like long lost best friends, catching up. They stood and took pictures, then asked, "Are you taking the archery lesson?"

My daughter was nervous and started to say no, when Merida cut her off.

"Yes. Nick! This is my good friend Sophia. I want you to give her your best lesson! Now, go. Be Brave! Change your Fate!"

My daughter took her lesson and shot an arrow like she had been doing this for years. (There was acknowledgment from the onlookers.)

As we went to leave, Merida stopped and shouted, "Goodbye my friend, Sophia! Have fun exploring the kingdom!"

As we walked away, my beaming daughter turned to me and said, "It's pretty neat when you like a star and you find out they like you back."

Afterwards, while my wife DD and DS2 were shopping, I went to City Hall. I wrote a personal thank you for the CM, playing Merida, and asked it be delivered to her. I also wanted her superior to know how incredibly grateful I was for her treatment of my daughter.

Dear Merida, if you are a post reader of this site, thank you, again!!!!!!

[faline]

What a special moment for your daughter!! Thanks for sharing this story.

[DisneyDawgette]

That's a phenomenal story! Thanks for sharing! :)

[hoop de do]

Great Story!
It was great that you acknowledged the CM.
They appreciate that.
You were "Brave" to do so.
:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[ANG]

Fanastic. Just fantastic. I'm so glad you wrote a note as well.

[Dopey's Girl]

That is so sweet! I love hearing when stuff like this happens. It's so easy for us to focus on the bad stuff, or the stuff we don't like, but we rarely praise people for the good.

Way to go Merida CM, and way to go you for taking the time out of your trip to praise her!

[laprana]

Your story brought tears to my eyes! It's CMs like this that make Disney wonderful. What a great thing you did by writing a note to the CM. I hope she and her supervisor both got it and realized what an impact Merida had on your DD! Thanks for sharing! :thumbsup:

[VWL Mom]

What a wonderful story. It's nice to hear about truly magical moments.

[TheVBs]

Oh my gosh, this is such a great story!! Thank you so much for sharing it. :mickey:

[Lindsey310]

Great story :thumbsup:
It's always nice when CM's go the extra mile!!!:mickey:

[faberj]

Great Story!!!!
Brought tears to my eyes.
I hope we encounter CM's that nice on our upcoming trip with our DS.

[Gator]

It's the CMs that go above and beyond that make us remember them and really love the whole Disney experience. I'll never forget some the CMs from our honeymoon. They're the reason I've been back 5 times since.

[dobby2010]

Thanks for sharing such a sweet story. Made me tear up! What a special memory for your daughter. Reminds me if when my sister was about six and we happened upon Aladdin and jasmine with no one else around and thy spent a good deal of time just chatting with her. Then when we left, jasmine gave her a kiss on her cheek that left a lipstick print. My sister wouldn't bathe til we got home lest it wash off. This is one of the reason why we spend our money visiting Disney. The cast members are second to none!

[Aurora]

Now THAT'S Disney magic. Chalk up another reader who had tears in her eyes.

Thanks for sharing such a great story. I felt like I was there with you.

[Tigerinvestigator]

That is awesome. Thank you for sharing with us. Always makes me feel good hearing how much a CM meant to a child.


It's the CMs that go above and beyond that make us remember them and really love the whole Disney experience. I'll never forget some the CMs from our honeymoon. They're the reason I've been back 5 times since.

Gator I also remember a castmember on our honeymoon in 1995 at the CR. We had just arrived and a young lady named Trudy made our honeymoon perfect. Funny how I can't remember someone's name that I met this morning, but after 17 years I still remember her very well. :thumbsup:

[taleasoldastime]

Thanks for sharing such a sweet story. Made me tear up! What a special memory for your daughter. Reminds me if when my sister was about six and we happened upon Aladdin and jasmine with no one else around and thy spent a good deal of time just chatting with her. Then when we left, jasmine gave her a kiss on her cheek that left a lipstick print. My sister wouldn't bathe til we got home lest it wash off. This is one of the reason why we spend our money visiting Disney. The cast members are second to none!

Its funny you say that because on my first trip to disney world when i was 7, alladin kissed my cheek and i didnt want to wash it! I went home and told all my friends about how alladin liked me! Sounds like alladin and jasmine CMs are always awesome!

[MrPeetrie]

Thank you to all of you for your appreciation.

[BrerGnat]

Awesome story. Thanks for sharing that!

And, thank you for writing that note to her. More people should do that. :thumbsup:

[MrPeetrie]

And, thank you for writing that note to her. More people should do that. :thumbsup:

Thank you. We actually wrote two different thank you notes for two different, outstanding CMs. The second was for our Mousekeeper. We handed that one to the concierge. As I stated, this was a great trip to Walt Disney World. CMs were amazing!!!

[GBBT]

That was great.CM's are 1 of the reasons we keep going back.....and there are still people that keep asking.."what's the deal,why do you keep going back time after time after time".They don't get the magic.

[azcavalier]

Too, too cool. We've had some pretty great experiences with Cast Members as well. We are taking a family with us in a month who has never been. I hope we have some similar experiences!

[EJS-Houston]

That's such a wonderful story! That's certainly one of the major things that keeps me coming back: that DisneyWorld is a place where things like that still happen.

[Disney Crazy]

Wow! What a special interaction. Just reading about it gave me chills! I hope Merida knows that what she did was special. :thumbsup: So glad you wrote a note to her.

[Quadstriker]

Thank you for sharing your experience

[mechanic]

great post. Those things make disney special. We make fun of the yeti being down, but at the end of the day its things like this that we remember.
I really hope that your personal notes are read, and shared with management.

[mom2morgan]

Very, very cool story :-) But enquiring minds want to know...were there others waiting in line while this was going on? What was their reaction? If I were a CM I think I'd be afraid to spend that special time with a child for fear of keeping others waiting...

[ransam]

i think that's a great story, and like others say it's a major reason why i keep coming back.

i have always said Disney makes all adults feel like kids, and treats kids like adults...

[DisneyorBust]

What a special memory, for both you and your daughter! It is fantastic that you took the time to write a note regarding your experience.
Thanks for sharing you story with us.

[Melanie]

Incredible! Loved reading the story. What a special memory for your daughter and yourself.

[pianobabe]

Wonderful!!! Thank you for sharing.:number1::mickey::cloud9:

[KylesMom]

What a beautiful Disney moment for your daughter. Brought tears to my eyes too. Thanks for sharing such an uplifting story! :mickey: Now back to your trip reports . . . :)

[iheartdisney]

:cry:

This made me cry. In a good way.

So sweet. Thanks for sharing.

[Jennifer_and_Chris]

Yes, I too am a crying mess! I should be in the car driving to WDW at the moment but, our road trip is on hold due to a dead car battery.

So, I want to blame the tears on my pent up anger at the car battery and fate. But, I know that its a greater power at work and your story is putting everything into perspective for me.

Magic is why we go. Cast members are really magicians. They learn and are taught how to read guests (some kids/parents would cringe at too much attention - others would love it) and how much interaction they'd like. While not a perfect skill to master, it is perfect when they do master the skill.

LOVE THIS STORY. Thank you for bringing the magic back into my vacation... even though it hasn't really started yet.

P.S. My oldest dd (7) was an Ariel fan since she could point and pick what she wanted a 8 months. About a month ago, she INSISTED that Merida was her new favorite. It's been Merida this, Merida that ever since. Hope we meet the same Merida. My dd's list of stuff to buy is a bow and arrow set and Merida "everything else". :D

[MrPeetrie]

Jennifer_and_Chris, we visited our local Disney Store yesterday, our first trip there since our vacation. She relayed her experience to the Cast Members there. You could see it had such a huge impact with her. We pre-purchased our "Brave" Blu-ray and she got a Merida plush to sleep with. The Cast Members seemed really touched with the story, as well.

Moreover, I just started to put our DVD together of the vacation. You can see how big her eyes are as we are leaving.
"That was awesome!" she said.
And it truly was.

Thank you dear Merida!