Meet a Cast Member Making Memorable Disney Vacation Club Magic
Day after day, magic makers across the globe grant vacation wishes for guests, and year after year, they start to feel more like family. As the holiday season is often a time to reflect, think of a Disney memory you’ve kept close to your heart – recent or from years past. Chances are, there’s a Cast Member attached to that special moment of yours.
Among those magic makers is Disney Vacation Club Member Experience Events & Benefits Manager Samantha, who’s dedicated to ensuring that, as Members return to the Disney destinations they call “home,” memorable magic awaits.
Born with an appetite for adventure, Samantha says that she wasn’t made to sit behind a desk. Throughout most of her 6 years with Disney, from her first role aboard the Disney Fantasy working in Youth Activities to now creating exclusive events for Disney Vacation Club Members, she’s successfully catered to this craving for an ever-changing work environment.
Always on the go, Samantha spends most days surveying event spaces across Walt Disney World Resort, dreaming up new ways to enhance the Member experience and bringing to life some of the most highly anticipated Member events of the year. Principle among these is Disney Vacation Club Moonlight Magic – a series of complimentary, after-hours events in Disney Parks for Members and their guests.
The event slate Samantha has helped bring to life this year included fresh and festive holiday offerings, from a Halloween Meet & Treat at Disney’s BoardWalk Resort to the Disney Vacation Club Very Member Merriment at Magic Kingdom park for Members attending Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.
“I’ve shed a lot of happy tears seeing the fun and enjoyment that comes out of these events,” Samantha shared. “I remember organizing our first-ever Disney Vacation Club ‘Eat & Greet’ (a lavish meal with a special guest) with Disney Legend Jodi Benson. In real-time, before my own eyes, I watched core Disney memories being made. To be in the same room as the voice of Ariel was amazing, and sharing such a special moment with a room full of genuinely engaged and excited Members meant more than words.”
Bonded by these one-of-a-kind experiences, Samantha lights up any time she sees a familiar face or has the pleasure of connecting with Members on a personal level.
“At one of last year’s Moonlight Magic events, a Member shared with me that seeing Darkwing Duck in the character meet and greet lineup was a dream come true,” she said. “Knowing that we elevated their Member experience in this way and made a positive impact on their evening was beyond heartwarming to hear.”
Being a part of Members’ lives has been Samantha’s ultimate adventure. “It’s more than a job to me,” she said. “It’s a lifestyle.”
By: Jill Chabot, Marketing Strategy Associate, Disney Vacation Club
