Well, I have a wonderful cast member story that I would like to share. I apologize but it is very long. I am just going to copy and paste the letter that I wrote to Disney and I will insert images along the way.
I hope you enjoy it!
-Mike
Angie Klote
Manager of Retail Sales
Walt Disney World Resort
Dear Mrs. Klote,
I am writing you to commend two of your outstanding cast members, Brooklyn James and her supervisor Jerry Garner. Both cast members work at the Leave A Legacy Center in EPCOT.
On December 27, 2005, my cousin Eric passed away from Leukemia at the age of thirteen. His absolute favorite place on Earth was Walt Disney World, as is mine, and he and I had always talked about how much fun it would be for the two of us to go there together someday. Unfortunately, we never got that chance but he was able to visit Disney World one last time with his family a few months before his death thanks to the Make A Wish Foundation. He looked so happy in the pictures that his family brought back. I was so glad to hear that Disney World was his last happy memory as he was immediately admitted back into intensive care 2 weeks after he returned.
Almost 1.5 years later I am still here regretting that I never got to visit Disney World with him. However, on May 11th of this year I had a thought that would help ease my pain. I had hoped that there would be some magical way to make a Leave A Legacy tile with a picture of Eric and I. This would allow Eric and I to truly be in Disney World at the same time and would last as long as the tiles do. I knew this was a very optimistic wish as these tiles are only created from images taken at the park, with special cameras, and both parties in attendance. On a whim, I decided to email a few email addresses such as guest relations, Leave A Legacy, etc with my story and my wish. I received a response from guest relations on May 14th which basically stated that in order to purchase a face tile, the photograph must be taken at EPCOT and that an image taken from a picture is not possible. As this was the answer I expected, I accepted it and proceeded to move on, assuming there was no way I would be able to get a picture of Eric and I on a tile.
To my surprise, I received an email from Brooklyn at the Leave A Legacy Center on May 16th. It stated that she had spoken with her manager Jerry about my situation and that he requested me to email them a photo of my cousin and I in jpeg format. She was careful to note that our heads needed to be close together and at the same height. I only had one recent photo of Eric and I but it did not meet the criteria.
Brooklyn allowed me to Photoshop the picture in order to make our heads closer together and at equal heights.
Unfortunately, after doing this, Brooklyn and her manager realized that the baseball hat I was wearing was hiding my features and my nose and eyes would be lost during engraving. I quickly took a current picture of my head and face, sans baseball hat, and emailed it to Brooklyn.
Brooklyn and Jerry spent the next week working their magic with the current photo of my head and the scanned photo of Eric and I. On May 23rd I received an email from Brooklyn stating that they finally figured it out and they were indeed able to make one photo of Eric and I that can be used to make a Leave A Legacy tile.
She asked that I call her to give her my address and payment information. When I called her, she informed me that they decided that this tile would be free of charge as part of the Year of a Million Dreams celebration!
Needless to say I was overwhelmed at this point. Not only did Brooklyn and Jerry go far above their job responsibilities in order to make something from nothing, they topped it off by giving the tile to me as a gift courtesy of Disney World’s current promotion. The term “Magical Moment” is an absolute understatement for my experience with Brooklyn and Jerry. These two cast members have single handedly defined the magic that the Walt Disney Company is known for. This is the exact reason that I travel to Walt Disney World every year in place of countless other possible destinations. The feeling that I get within Disney World’s “borders” are like nothing else I can experience anywhere on Earth. I feel a sense of calmness as well as a sense of freedom that allows me to be a kid again, even at the age of 29.
When people ask me why I enjoy Disney World to the extent that I do, my honest answer is always simply “because of the cast members”. As amazing as the Disney World parks are, the single entity that sets them apart from any other vacation destination on the planet is the team of cast members. Companies from all over the world try to mimic the service that Walt Disney World gives but they repeatedly fail. It is easy to mimic someone but if they do not have the magic running through their veins, they will continue to fail.
Walt Disney World is the gold standard and the epitome of customer service. Cast members like Brooklyn James and Jerry Garner are the perfect example of this. I sincerely thank them and the Walt Disney Company for bringing joy to millions of people across the globe. I honestly believe that a resort as small as 47 square miles but with endless amounts of magic has enough power to change the attitudes of all who visit it. I am literally a better person because of the joy Walt Disney World brings me and I know countless other people who share the same sentiment.
Please accept my highest regards for Brooklyn and Jerry as they truly shared a part in allowing Eric to rest with a smile on his face knowing he will forever be a part of his favorite place on Earth, Walt Disney World.
Sincerely,
Mike
I hope everyone enjoyed my story. It truly was a magical experience.
***UPDATE*****
I visited EPCOT and found the tile!!!
I hope you enjoy it!
-Mike
May 23, 2007
Manager of Retail Sales
Walt Disney World Resort
Dear Mrs. Klote,
I am writing you to commend two of your outstanding cast members, Brooklyn James and her supervisor Jerry Garner. Both cast members work at the Leave A Legacy Center in EPCOT.
On December 27, 2005, my cousin Eric passed away from Leukemia at the age of thirteen. His absolute favorite place on Earth was Walt Disney World, as is mine, and he and I had always talked about how much fun it would be for the two of us to go there together someday. Unfortunately, we never got that chance but he was able to visit Disney World one last time with his family a few months before his death thanks to the Make A Wish Foundation. He looked so happy in the pictures that his family brought back. I was so glad to hear that Disney World was his last happy memory as he was immediately admitted back into intensive care 2 weeks after he returned.
Almost 1.5 years later I am still here regretting that I never got to visit Disney World with him. However, on May 11th of this year I had a thought that would help ease my pain. I had hoped that there would be some magical way to make a Leave A Legacy tile with a picture of Eric and I. This would allow Eric and I to truly be in Disney World at the same time and would last as long as the tiles do. I knew this was a very optimistic wish as these tiles are only created from images taken at the park, with special cameras, and both parties in attendance. On a whim, I decided to email a few email addresses such as guest relations, Leave A Legacy, etc with my story and my wish. I received a response from guest relations on May 14th which basically stated that in order to purchase a face tile, the photograph must be taken at EPCOT and that an image taken from a picture is not possible. As this was the answer I expected, I accepted it and proceeded to move on, assuming there was no way I would be able to get a picture of Eric and I on a tile.
To my surprise, I received an email from Brooklyn at the Leave A Legacy Center on May 16th. It stated that she had spoken with her manager Jerry about my situation and that he requested me to email them a photo of my cousin and I in jpeg format. She was careful to note that our heads needed to be close together and at the same height. I only had one recent photo of Eric and I but it did not meet the criteria.
Brooklyn allowed me to Photoshop the picture in order to make our heads closer together and at equal heights.
Unfortunately, after doing this, Brooklyn and her manager realized that the baseball hat I was wearing was hiding my features and my nose and eyes would be lost during engraving. I quickly took a current picture of my head and face, sans baseball hat, and emailed it to Brooklyn.
Brooklyn and Jerry spent the next week working their magic with the current photo of my head and the scanned photo of Eric and I. On May 23rd I received an email from Brooklyn stating that they finally figured it out and they were indeed able to make one photo of Eric and I that can be used to make a Leave A Legacy tile.
She asked that I call her to give her my address and payment information. When I called her, she informed me that they decided that this tile would be free of charge as part of the Year of a Million Dreams celebration!
Needless to say I was overwhelmed at this point. Not only did Brooklyn and Jerry go far above their job responsibilities in order to make something from nothing, they topped it off by giving the tile to me as a gift courtesy of Disney World’s current promotion. The term “Magical Moment” is an absolute understatement for my experience with Brooklyn and Jerry. These two cast members have single handedly defined the magic that the Walt Disney Company is known for. This is the exact reason that I travel to Walt Disney World every year in place of countless other possible destinations. The feeling that I get within Disney World’s “borders” are like nothing else I can experience anywhere on Earth. I feel a sense of calmness as well as a sense of freedom that allows me to be a kid again, even at the age of 29.
When people ask me why I enjoy Disney World to the extent that I do, my honest answer is always simply “because of the cast members”. As amazing as the Disney World parks are, the single entity that sets them apart from any other vacation destination on the planet is the team of cast members. Companies from all over the world try to mimic the service that Walt Disney World gives but they repeatedly fail. It is easy to mimic someone but if they do not have the magic running through their veins, they will continue to fail.
Walt Disney World is the gold standard and the epitome of customer service. Cast members like Brooklyn James and Jerry Garner are the perfect example of this. I sincerely thank them and the Walt Disney Company for bringing joy to millions of people across the globe. I honestly believe that a resort as small as 47 square miles but with endless amounts of magic has enough power to change the attitudes of all who visit it. I am literally a better person because of the joy Walt Disney World brings me and I know countless other people who share the same sentiment.
Please accept my highest regards for Brooklyn and Jerry as they truly shared a part in allowing Eric to rest with a smile on his face knowing he will forever be a part of his favorite place on Earth, Walt Disney World.
Sincerely,
Mike
I hope everyone enjoyed my story. It truly was a magical experience.
***UPDATE*****
I visited EPCOT and found the tile!!!
