Calling All Parents

[boettj]

I was reading through another thread today where a DVC member mentioned that they would not stay at BCV due to unattended children in the lobby and at Cape May. Sevral people echoed that sentiment.

As a parent of three DC's, A 7 year old DS, a 4 year old DD and a 7 month old DD, I find it unacceptable to just let your children roam. This is for servral reasons.

First, do parents think that child molesters don't go to Disney? Not to try and shatter some peoples rosey opinion of Disney, but it's the perfect place for predators.​

Secondly, do the parents not realize that the other people there pay just as much as they did and sometimes more to try and take a relaxing vacation?​

And finally, I realize that Disney is a place for kids (That includes young and old), but nobody wants their day spoiled by little Bobby screaming in the lobby.​

This weekend, I took the family to the state fair. My DS walked about 50' over to look at one of the booth's without us. Fortunately for us, I saw him headed over. We had a very long talk with him. I called our local police station and asked if an officer could talk to him and my DD. They welcomed the opportunity. Unfortunately, they do not keep a binder of all kids that go missing. I figured that would be an eye opener for them. My DW was a little upset with me since I was scaring the kids. Well too bad. I asked her why they have an Amber Alert, http://codeamber.org/alerts.html. I know deep down she understands.

I would hope that the kids running around in the lobbies and other places in WDW are not DVC members's kids. I have a hard time believing that. But anyone that does read this post, please take responsiblity for you children. Think of others for a change. Disney is not there to watch your children. If you need a break from the kids, then Disney offers plenty of solutions to watch them: ( Yes they cost, but they are safer)

Kid's Clubs​

• Sandcastle at Yacht & Beach

• Neverland Club at Polynesian (Top rated from other threads)

• Harbor Club at Boardwalk

• Mouseketeer Club at Grand Floridian

• Simba's at AKL

Other Options​

• Pirates cruise.

• Grand Adventures in Cooking at the Grand Floridian

• Kid's Nite out: www.kidsniteout.com (Disney Affliated.)

• Fairy Godmothers (Not Disney)

The childcare clubs are for kids ages 4-12 and they charge $10 per hour/per kid. I'm pretty sure they are open from about 4:30 until midnight. They do have a kids "buffet" for dinner and they give blankets and pillows for the kids as it gets later. You can make reservations in advance (I forget how far ahead) I think by using the 407 WDW-DINE #. I know a couple people who used them and were very happy with the clubs. Unfortunately, we couldn't use the club during our Dec 2003 BC stay because our youngest child was under 2. We did look at the club in the BC and it seemed really nice. I would love to use it when our youngest hits age 4 for one night out. It probably wouldn't be too bad staying at the BWV and using the club at the BC. You don't have to stay at that resort to use it's kids club. As long as you don't mind carrying tired kids home to the BWV!

Sorry for the rant. I needed to get that off my chest. Thanks for listening. I hope this helps at least one person other than myself.

 

[mickeywho?]

Well said. I know we all feel very comfortable while at "home" and maybe there is a false sense of security in our Disney minds - but this is what predators look for and although it is rarely publicised I wouldn't be surprised if more than a few kids have been assaulted or threatened while away from there parents eye. My son does not go into washrooms alone (even though I get looks from other adults when I bring him into the ladies' room) and is always within an arm's reach while out at the parks or in the resorts. Better to be safe than sorry!

 

[prez65]

Very Good Post.....I think a lot of Parents have a false sense of security at Disney.

This should make for a nice wake up call.......

 

[Good Ol Gal]

I'm the meanest mom at WDW..my kids go where I/DH go, no exceptions.

We had MIL/FIL with us on our last trip and figured hey this will be nice... 4 kids, 4 adults.

Yeah, up until the point FIL lost our ds5! Lucky for him our ds hadn't wandered off and I found him super fast. I had two kids from that point on.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

While I agree with the main principles of your post, I have to agree with your wife on the situation at the fair. It seems a bit extreme (to me - remember, JMO) to involve a police officer for the offense of a 7yo wandering 50 feet away from you. While I would agree you should have the discussion about the Code Amber with him yourselves, we walk a fine line between educating and scaring our children today.

At 7yo, a child is coming into the age of independence being expected of them at places like school. Last year, at age 7, my twins were expected to walk to school by themselves on a major thoroughfare. We struggled with that and ultimately decided to make other arrangements for a ride to school for them on the one or two mornings a week we could not take them ourselves. My point is, the school thought they were ok to walk. If that is the case, then in some ways I think we have to teach them how to be independent - safely.

Soon my children will turn 9. Last week we started letting them ride their bikes on our street by themselves for the first time (with proper safety gear and rules like no talking to strangers, stay away from cars, etc). DS came home one day after his ride, looked at me, then broke down into tears. He said he thought a car was following him. This is a confident, happy go lucky kid who doesn't cry much. He was so scared from all the warnings we've had to give them. Better scared than sorry, sure, but it seems a shame we have to do this today.

I ask this in all sincerity, and realize there will be all types of answers based on individuality, but at what point do we let our children "grow up"? My kids are entering 3rd grade and I'm being told by teachers that this is the grade they are expected to be increasingly independent. In my way of thinking, I have to help them learn to do so, so we've been taking baby steps for a while now. Food for thought.

 

[prez65]

While I agree with the main principles of your post, I have to agree with your wife on the situation at the fair. It seems a bit extreme (to me - remember, JMO) to involve a police officer for the offense of a 7yo wandering 50 feet away from you. While I would agree you should have the discussion about the Code Amber with him yourselves, we walk a fine line between educating and scaring our children today.

At 7yo, a child is coming into the age of independence being expected of them at places like school. Last year, at age 7, my twins were expected to walk to school by themselves on a major thoroughfare. We struggled with that and ultimately decided to make other arrangements for a ride to school for them on the one or two mornings a week we could not take them ourselves. My point is, the school thought they were ok to walk. If that is the case, then in some ways I think we have to teach them how to be independent - safely.

Two months from now my children will turn 9. Last week we started letting them ride their bikes on our street by themselves for the first time (with proper safety gear and rules like no talking to strangers, stay away from cars, etc). DS came home one day after his ride, looked at me, then broke down into tears. He said he thought a car was following him. This is a confident, happy go lucky kid who doesn't cry much. He was so scared from all the warnings we've had to give them. Better scared than sorry, sure, but it seems a shame we have to do this today.

And at what point do we let our children "grow up"? My kids are entering 3rd grade and I'm being told by teachers that this is the grade they are expected to be increasingly independent. In my way of thinking, I have to help them learn to do so, so we've been taking baby steps for a while now. Food for thought.

I do not think she involved a Police Officer at that point....She just wanted an Officer to explain to her kids that sometimes bad things happen...
Sometimes children need an authority fiqure other than a Parent to talk to them....They are usually hearing the same things over and over from a Parent and love to test the limits...

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I understood that, and we have had discussions with police officers ourselves. The timing is what I was referring to.

This weekend, I took the family to the state fair. My DS walked about 50' over to look at one of the booth's without us. Fortunately for us, I saw him headed over. We had a very long talk with him. I called our local police station and asked if an officer could talk to him and my DD.

(It is a husband, btw.)

My DW was a little upset with me since I was scaring the kids.

 

[jiggerj]

Just wanted to share a scary experience that I witnessed at Wilderness Lodge lobby-

My son and I were heading into the lobby via the walkway from the Villas- A HYSTERICAL mom ran by me- crying and yelling for her son- "my son...hes only 4...hes lost..." Oh it was awful!!!!!!!!! My son and I went into the arcade to look for any little one that was alone- Not there-

Cm's were calm but obviously very concerned and very quickly were covering the immediate area looking for him-

The Father of the boy and the Mom were absolutely beside themselves. It was heart-wrenching to see.

Ends up that the parents were not paying attention during check in and the little guy decided to explore the lobby and under some furniture- I believe it was one of the cm's that found him but those parents certainly had a scare as did my ds and myself-

 

[prez65]

I understood that, and we have had discussions with police officers ourselves. The timing is what I was referring to. (It is a husband, btw.)

Sorry....Change all the she's to He's in my prior post....

Well timing is everything....Better to tell a child how to use a knife the first time to cut his food the right way before he/she...loses a finger...

But I do hear you about when do we let our children grow up...I remember leaving my house when I was 7 and not coming home till the street lights went on....

We would ride our bikes all over town.(no helmets) go to the parks that acually had fun things to play on..not like parks today...

I acually have 3 girls...18... 9... and.. 3....I still don't know when the right time to let them grow up is.....

 

[Muushka]

What a great thread! Thank you for making parents aware of the responsibility that they have to watch their children!

 

[Figment2]

This past May, a Mom "lost" her 7 year old daughter in AK. I asked her if she had pointed out CM's to her daughter; pointing out their white name badge. She had not.

I was surprised. I'm not a parent but that would have been one of the first things I did in a park.

Cyn

 

[dianeschlicht]

I was reading through another thread today where a DVC member mentioned that they would not stay at BCV due to unattended children in the lobby and at Cape May. Sevral people echoed that sentiment.

As a parent of three DC's, A 7 year old DS, a 4 year old DD and a 7 month old DD, I find it unacceptable to just let your children roam. This is for servral reasons.

First, do parents think that child molesters don't go to Disney? Not to try and shatter some peoples rosey opinion of Disney, but it's the perfect place for predators.​

Secondly, do the parents not realize that the other people there pay just as much as they did and sometimes more to try and take a relaxing vacation?​

And finally, I realize that Disney is a place for kids (That includes young and old), but nobody wants their day spoiled by little Bobby screaming in the lobby.​

This weekend, I took the family to the state fair. My DS walked about 50' over to look at one of the booth's without us. Fortunately for us, I saw him headed over. We had a very long talk with him. I called our local police station and asked if an officer could talk to him and my DD. They welcomed the opportunity. Unfortunately, they do not keep a binder of all kids that go missing. I figured that would be an eye opener for them. My DW was a little upset with me since I was scaring the kids. Well too bad. I asked her why they have an Amber Alert, http://codeamber.org/alerts.html. I know deep down she understands.

I would hope that the kids running around in the lobbies and other places in WDW are not DVC members's kids. I have a hard time believing that. But anyone that does read this post, please take responsiblity for you children. Think of others for a change. Disney is not there to watch your children. If you need a break from the kids, then Disney offers plenty of solutions to watch them: ( Yes they cost, but they are safer)

Kid's Clubs​

• Sandcastle at Yacht & Beach

• Neverland Club at Polynesian (Top rated from other threads)

• Harbor Club at Boardwalk

• Mouseketeer Club at Grand Floridian

• Simba's at AKL

Other Options​

• Pirates cruise.

• Grand Adventures in Cooking at the Grand Floridian

• Kid's Nite out: www.kidsniteout.com (Disney Affliated.)

• Fairy Godmothers (Not Disney)

Sorry for the rant. I needed to get that off my chest. Thanks for listening. I hope this helps at least one person other than myself.

Excellent post and one that bears reapeating!

 

[Inkmahm]

This past May, a Mom "lost" her 7 year old daughter in AK. I asked her if she had pointed out CM's to her daughter; pointing out their white name badge. She had not.

I was surprised. I'm not a parent but that would have been one of the first things I did in a park.

Cyn

I would take it one step more and tell kids to look for those white name tags on someone IN a store or restaurant or running a ride. Those white name tags are for sale on ebay so a predator could STILL convince a child that he or she was a Disney employee.

Only once have I run across a lost child and that was many years ago at Disneyland. I told the child (don't even remember if it was a boy or girl decades later...) to the area for lost kids near the entrance of the park. What I DO remember was that there were lots of kids in there that were being entertained by Disney employees. None looked terrified, they looked like they were having fun! I was impressed then as I am now that Disney really does a good job with reuniting families. Much better not to get lost in the first place though.

 

[boettj]

Just so that everyone understands, I did not engage the police when it happened. I took the kids to the police station the next day. I understand what you mean about scaring them. I don't want my children living scared, but more importantly to me and our family is that the child is living.

My main goal is to inform parents of the possiblity. Provide a personal example and to offer solutions other than just letting the kids run around on their own.

Please if you have examples that you have encountered like the one at Wildneress Lodge, then please share them. I know there are some that have never had that feeling of your child being missing. I have not, but have also witnessed other parents that have lost touch. And in my case, they were seperated for just a minute in a large crowd.

When the kids are running around unsupervised, how long will it take for the parents to discover that their child is missing? If you are familar with the Amber Alert, the longer the time from the abduction to the notification of authorities is critical.

I am one that grew up in a small town in the smallest state. When I was a child, my friends and I would go off for hours. Riding our bikes, hiking through the woods or go to the beach. At that time it was common place. However, when I was young, a boy by the name of Jason Foreman was abducted in our town. Scary time. He was not found until 10 years ago, and they found him buried in the basement of his next door neighbor.



Jason

 

[DisDaydreamer]

Our children are grown now. When we brought them to Disney for the first times at 6 & 8 years old we felt sooo secure, and even let them have never before experienced freedom. Today is different. Preditors look for that type of situation now (maybe even then). You got to figure, if someone has the money to go to Thailand, they have the money to go to Disney. SAD as it is.

 

[boettj]

bump





Jason