Chat with the Chief Magic Official

[Justin M]

Then, one of the coolest things happened. I was approached by one of the Cast Members in charge of the event and told that, along with Mickey, I would be presenting Michael Phelps with a "Key to the Kingdom"!!! They had a giant gold key made up in honor of Michael and all of his accomplishments and as a part of this special ceremony I was going to have the chance to meet him and help present him with this key. How cool is that??

 

[Justin M]

I have to run to a rehearsal for a bit. I'll be back with more pictures later!

 

[ireland_nicole]

Love the pics of you and Mr. Phelps! Keep us posted re: your travels
Nicole

 

[Wingedheart]

Welcome back! Still unbelievable that you met Michael Phelps! And, more unbelievable that I was in WDW then and missed seeing him by ONE DAY! AHHH!

Anyway, if your magic works OUTside of WDW - could you make it STOP snowing in NY please

Patiently waiting more installments

Kelly/Wings

Oh - Ireland Nicole - we'll be in WDW together for Christmas 2009!

 

[Justin M]

Love the pics of you and Mr. Phelps! Keep us posted re: your travels
Nicole

Thanks Nicole!

Welcome back! Still unbelievable that you met Michael Phelps! And, more unbelievable that I was in WDW then and missed seeing him by ONE DAY! AHHH!

Anyway, if your magic works OUTside of WDW - could you make it STOP snowing in NY please

Patiently waiting more installments

Kelly/Wings

Oh - Ireland Nicole - we'll be in WDW together for Christmas 2009!

Ha ha ha! I wish I had those powers! It's snowing here in PA right now too . . . Thanks for hanging in there and coming back to read more about my adventures! I hope my long delay hasn't scared everyone else away!

 

[Justin M]

Before I get into the rest of the incredible adventures from my day that started with greeting the guests at the Magic Kingdom and meeting Michael Phelps, I need to jump back a couple of days.

When I started reporting on my August trip I was missing several photos from my first responsibility. Now that I have them, I'd like to recap what I did when I first arrived in Walt Disney World back on Wednesday, August 27th.

After checking into the gorgeous Boardwalk Resort and before heading down to Celebration to be a part of the brainstorming session, I had the opportunity to see some real magic happen. Dreams really do come true . . .

 

[safetymom]

Don't keep us waiting.

 

[Justin M]

My first role on this trip required me to head quickly to the Magic Kingdom. Once I arrived there I had the chance to take a detailed, guided tour of the Cinderella Castle Suite, meet some of the VIP concierges who help make the guests evening in the castle so magical, and got to learn a lot about the inner workings of the world's most exclusive accomodations.

The real highlight, however, was meeting the family who had one this incredible dream. Their story, like so many that I've heard during my time as CMO, reminds me of how fortunate I am and of how real the magic truly is for people.

The winners were a single mom with two young children - a 10 year old son and a 4 yeard old daughter. They had never been to Walt Disney World before, and the mom had been saving as long as she could remember for this dream vacation. Their first couple of days in town they stopped at Disney's Hollywood Studios and one of the water parks. SO, their first ever glimpse of the Magic Kingdom, Main Street, Cinderella's Castle, etc, were while they were being escorted to their room for the night. Can you imagine that being your first introduction to the Magic Kingdom??

Anyway, here are some pictures. Be sure to stop over to www.dreamCMO.com where I will eventually (hopefully soon!) have the full story and some more pictures posted.

(Sharing a secret handshake with an awesome 10 year old winner!)

(entering the foyer and seeing the gold elevator)

(entering the Suite)

 

[Justin M]

Here are some pictures from my time hosting the Castle Suite winners. I can't tell you how incredible this family was. They had a true dream vacation, but it was a real dream for me to be able to meet them. They are definitely the kind of people who can profoundly change your outlook on life - - - for the better!

(While his Mom and sister were swept up in the magic and royal decadence of the Suite, he couldn't wait to tear into the fresh fruit!)

(Seriously, the fruit was a big hit!)

(Checking out the very magical mirror/TV)

(They just saw the bathroom for the first time! It's incredible!)

(What a joyous experience this was!)

 

[safetymom]

That is the magic of Disney. How wonderful for them.

 

[Justin M]

Now, back to Friday (August 29th)...

After the festivities with Michael Phelps, I had the chance to head over to Disney's Hollywood Studios and spend some wonderful time with the Dream Squad. We made some magic happen, awarded some Dreams, and danced and played in the streets with some guests as they prepared for the awesome Block Party Bash.

Here are a few photos from my time at DHS (Disney's Hollywood Studios) with the Dream Squad . . .

 

[Justin M]

That's right, there's more...

All in one incredible day, as a part of one incredible trip, in the midst of one absolutely beyond-comprehension incredible year, I had the chance to see and experience more magic than I ever thought possible. After hanging with Kerri from the Ambassador Team early that morning, greeting so many wonderful guests at the Magic Kingdom, meeting Michael Phelps, and spending an afternoon with the Dream Squad at Disney's Hollywood Studio, I had one more surprise waiting for me . . .

I headed over to Downtown Disney where I would be allowed to create one more memory that will last me a lifetime. The CMO team had connected with the team at the brilliant Cirque du Soleil show, La Nouba, to arrange for some very special priority seating. We headed into the ticket booth, identified four seats in the very last row that had already checked in, and prepared to spread some magic. I had the opportunity to meet one of the hilarious and incredibly talented clowns from La Nouba (Balto) and he and I headed off to the very top row to find a lucky family.

Upon arriving at the previously randomly determined seats, I introduced myself to the family, introduced them to Balto (just the chance to meet a Cirque character up close and personal like this is a rare treat!), and then gave them the scoop. If they wanted, compliments of Disney, Cirque du Soleil, myself and Balto, they could move all the way down to the VERY front row where we had seats reserved for them. The catch, however, was that if they took these great seats they would have to stay and watch the whole show with ME. (That's right, my CMO team surprised me with a ticket for the show as well. I'd never seen it before and boy was I excited!!!)

They took us up on the offer, we had a blast walking down to the seats with Balto clowning around, and we had a few minutes before the start of La Nouba to get acquainted. Yet another incredible family. Dad is a firefighter in North Carolina and mom stays at home raising two awesome boys (11 and 7 years old). This was their first experience with Cirque du Soleil and it was the first night of their vacation.

After watching the show - - - - and if you've never seen it before, GO SEE IT! It is phenomenal! - - - we spent a while strolling around Downtown Disney. I took the family over to the Candy Cauldron I picked them up some sweet treats for the end of an amazing evening.

Again, I can't explain how wonderful this family was. The dad is a true hero and taking a Disney vacation is a rare and very special treat for them. The fact they were the randomly selected family that was in those four seats is another example of how real the magic of Disney is. I hope the experience made their vacation more magical. I know the experience made my life more magical.

 

[Justin M]

Okay, wow, that was a long-winded post! I still have one more day from this trip (Animal Kingdom Dream Squad!) to wrap up before I jump into the many adventures of September and October!

Time to get back to work here, though! Please keep reading and I'll see you all again soon!

~Justin

 

[safetymom]

Thank you for the great updates and pictures.

 

[RatBoy]

Justin,

Welcome home, and thanks for the updates. It's great to read how closely you connect with the families -- more proof that Disney found the right guy for the job!

Loved the pictures of the family in the castle suite -- they couldn't look happier.

-Bret

 

[LUVMICKEY]

Thanks again Justin for telling us all about all your wonderful adventures and exciting and heart warming things that you have been a part of. I love to read all about them. The family that got picked to stay in the Castle Suite for the night, reading all about that gave me cold chills and brought tears to my eyes.

 

[Justin M]

Thank you for the great updates and pictures.

You're welcome! Thanks for reading!

Justin,

Welcome home, and thanks for the updates. It's great to read how closely you connect with the families -- more proof that Disney found the right guy for the job!

Loved the pictures of the family in the castle suite -- they couldn't look happier.

-Bret

Thanks Bret. I'm having a blast with every opportunity I've been given and I can't explain what a joy it is to connect with the guests on this level. I'm truly blesssed!

Thanks again Justin for telling us all about all your wonderful adventures and exciting and heart warming things that you have been a part of. I love to read all about them. The family that got picked to stay in the Castle Suite for the night, reading all about that gave me cold chills and brought tears to my eyes.

You're welcome! I'm only half way done with my year (can you believe it's been 6 months already??) so I'm sure I'll have many more adventures to share!

Speaking of which, I still need to wrap up the August trip so I can start telling you about September and October!

 

[Justin M]

The final day of my August CMO adventure was packed full of a lot of fun as well. Each trip has allowed me to experience new and wonderful things around the parks and this one was certainly no different!

My morning was spent at Disney's Animal Kingdom, hanging out with the Dream Squad. What a fantastic group of Cast Members! Everybody I've met during my time as CMO has been awesome, but this group took great care of me and really embodied everything that makes a cast member amazing.

We had the chance to head out into the park and make some magic happen. Our first stop was near the entrance for "It's Tough to be a Bug" where we awarded some Dream Fastpasses . . .

 

[tothesea]

My first role on this trip required me to head quickly to the Magic Kingdom. Once I arrived there I had the chance to take a detailed, guided tour of the Cinderella Castle Suite, meet some of the VIP concierges who help make the guests evening in the castle so magical, and got to learn a lot about the inner workings of the world's most exclusive accomodations.

The real highlight, however, was meeting the family who had one this incredible dream. Their story, like so many that I've heard during my time as CMO, reminds me of how fortunate I am and of how real the magic truly is for people.

The winners were a single mom with two young children - a 10 year old son and a 4 yeard old daughter. They had never been to Walt Disney World before, and the mom had been saving as long as she could remember for this dream vacation. Their first couple of days in town they stopped at Disney's Hollywood Studios and one of the water parks. SO, their first ever glimpse of the Magic Kingdom, Main Street, Cinderella's Castle, etc, were while they were being escorted to their room for the night. Can you imagine that being your first introduction to the Magic Kingdom??

Anyway, here are some pictures. Be sure to stop over to www.dreamCMO.com where I will eventually (hopefully soon!) have the full story and some more pictures posted.

(Sharing a secret handshake with an awesome 10 year old winner!)

(entering the foyer and seeing the gold elevator)

(entering the Suite)

Kleenex Justin! Please pass the Kleenex! I love this story!

 

[Justin M]

After awarding the Dream Fastpasses, we had the chance to find some lucky and friendly guests who we helped set up with some special priority seats for Finding Nemo: the Musical. (Another show that you definitely have to make time for when you are in the park!)


One of the real treats this morning was selecting a family for a special private safari ride. I saw two girl skipping toward us on the path, both wearing Minnie ears and decided that they were a group we should get to know. Upon approaching them and starting a conversation, however, I quickly discovered that they were from Italy and didn't speak much English. Fortunately their mother was nearby and we soon learned that there was a group of 9 of them who came to Walt Disney World all the way from Italy for an extended family reunion/vacation. They were delightful and so the Dream Squad members and I swept them off to the front of the line where we piled into a safari vehicle along with them for a special safari.

(One of the Dream Squad members was a Safari driver prior to his time on the Dream Squad, so he hopped on the mic and gave us an endlessly entertaining and very informative version of the attraction!)


The animals seemed to know that something special was going on as well, as even the Dream Squad members commented that it was one of the best, most active trips through the Africa wilderness that they'd ever experienced. The rhinos were very active, the male lion was up and walking around, and the giraffes got VERY up close and personal!