Melanie has grown a bit since this picture was taken, but this is how she'll always look in my mind.
She was supposed to have spent six months living and working at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, finishing up this past January.
Then of course everything changed, the virus hit, DCP was postponed, and she had to stay home.
Now, with the world shaking off its rust and resuming something resembling its normal course, Disney has not only restarted the program, but also graciously given preference to 2020 applicants who, like Melanie, were impacted by The Great Shutdown.
So starting August 2nd, Mel will join scores of other college kids from around the country to experience a life of servitude to The Mouse.
Interestingly, they don't tell you what your exact job is going to be until a week or so before the program begins. Melanie could end up in foodservice, custodial, retail, lifeguarding, or whatever the Disney powers-that-be decide she should do.
There are also courses to take while she's there, including the very ponderous "Traditions," a 4- to 5-hour orientation session conducted through Disney University. This is where you are indoctrinated into Disney values, "The Disney Look," and also, I'm guessing, a long list of rules that, should you break any of them, will have you on a bus back to Cleveland within the hour.
I kid, of course, when I compare being a Disney Cast Member with indentured servitude, but this is only because I want to be able to enter Disney parks in the future without being pulled aside for reeducation and interrogation.
It is, in all seriousness, a wonderful opportunity for my daughter, who will turn 21 while she's in Florida and be away from home for the longest period of her life. Terry and/or I will undoubtedly fly down to see her a few times over these next 5-6 months, but for the most part, she'll be navigating it on her own.
And she will do wonderfully.
Thanks, Mickey!
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