I just heard about the cast member who was killed before step-off on February 11th at The Magic Kingdom. I was shocked and hurt when I realized that the victim of this surreal tragedy was Javier Cruz, one of the brightest and kindest people I had ever worked with in my six year run with Disney.
Javier and I were greeters together in Toon Town in and around 1997-98. What I remember of Javier is only an unshakeable sense of humor and a perfect smile. He was one of the first people I met while working at The Magic Kingdom, and some of my first memories as a cast member include working alongside Javier. With his playful and honest personality, he could put anyone into a good mood. He was great with the families, the children, and his fellow cast. Anyone, and I mean anyone, who knew him will agree that he was a spectacular guy on every level.
We both "graduated" to character status after some time in the trenches as greeters--not a very highly regarded status among characters--and I moved on to other parts of the Kingdom, and later to MGM before I called it quits. I ran into Javier occasionally when revisiting the tunnels, and my last memory of him was his look of surprise, a healthly handshake, and a bearhug. We exchanged current phone numbers, and to my extreme regret, I never followed up.
I left Disney over a year-and-a-half ago, so hearing the sorrowful news of Javier sent all the memories rushing back to me of the great times I had as a greeter and character, and of all the truly important human beings that I grew to know and appreciate.
And Javier Cruz tops the list .
JA
Javier and I were greeters together in Toon Town in and around 1997-98. What I remember of Javier is only an unshakeable sense of humor and a perfect smile. He was one of the first people I met while working at The Magic Kingdom, and some of my first memories as a cast member include working alongside Javier. With his playful and honest personality, he could put anyone into a good mood. He was great with the families, the children, and his fellow cast. Anyone, and I mean anyone, who knew him will agree that he was a spectacular guy on every level.
We both "graduated" to character status after some time in the trenches as greeters--not a very highly regarded status among characters--and I moved on to other parts of the Kingdom, and later to MGM before I called it quits. I ran into Javier occasionally when revisiting the tunnels, and my last memory of him was his look of surprise, a healthly handshake, and a bearhug. We exchanged current phone numbers, and to my extreme regret, I never followed up.
I left Disney over a year-and-a-half ago, so hearing the sorrowful news of Javier sent all the memories rushing back to me of the great times I had as a greeter and character, and of all the truly important human beings that I grew to know and appreciate.
And Javier Cruz tops the list .
JA
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