Happy Halloween! If you are looking to plan a spooky celebration at home this weekend, look no further than these Disney activities to keep the seasonal spirit (or spirits) alive! Dress up as your favorite character, and then transform your pumpkins using these stencil carving templates of Minnie Mouse, Tinkerbell, Jack Skellington, or a Vampire Mickey. Not quite ready for carving pumpkins this year? Use paint, a small pumpkin, some glue, and this downloadable cut-out to recreate The Child’s ears from The Mandalorian.
PHOTO BY AMBER KEMP-GERSTEL FOR DISNEY FAMILY
Trick-or-treaters who are staying indoors may want to decorate their rooms with some delightfully ghoulish décor: string together cobwebs, bats, and Mickey using different color paper to create a Halloween Time banner.
At the end of the night — and the candy bowl — keep the party going by celebrating #DisneyPlusHallowstream and tuning-in to watch 13-year old Marnie and her family on her adventures with the supernatural in “Halloweentown” on Disney+.
If you are looking for last-minute inspiration, check how fans of Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, or 20th Century are celebrating their Halloween at home, and tag #DisneyHalloMoments on Instagram to join the fun.
This June marks National Safety Month – a month that acknowledges the importance of safety in the workplace, as well as in our communities, through education, leadership and advocacy.
At Disney, safety is an important tenet and it starts with our cast members. Our dedicated cast members are at the heart of every great Disney experience, and the secret to the magic. It’s for that reason that Disney’s Four Keys – including Safety, Courtesy, Show and Efficiency – were created to serve as a compass for our cast members to create happiness and serve others.
Safety is the first key as a reminder that it is a top priority in the decisions we make – both for our cast members, and for our guests. It’s a foundation that was introduced by Walt Disney himself many decades ago.
It takes a variety of highly talented team members in different roles, working together to promote a healthy and safe environment at our Disney Parks and stores. And as we continue with the phased reopening of our parks, resorts and stores around the world, we’re excited to introduce you to a just a few of these professionals who are helping shape, monitor and implement our enhanced health and safety measures. They’re working closely with industry groups, research universities and public health agencies to promote safe practices while we work, stay, and play at Disney parks, resorts and Disney stores.
Meet some of our team members
Dr. Pamela Hymel – Chief Medical Officer, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products
Dr. Pamela Hymel has been with Disney for nearly 10 years, serving as the Chief Medical Officer for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, where she’s responsible for developing global occupational health and wellness strategy, as well as managing domestic occupational medicine clinics and programs, guest first aid services and wellness programs.
Dr. Hymel received her MD from Louisiana State University in New Orleans and a master’s in public health from Tulane University. From there, she went on to do her Internal Medicine and Occupational Medicine training at University of California, Irvine and is board certified in both areas.
“The programs I work on give me an opportunity to improve the health and wellness of our cast members,” said Dr. Hymel. “An example of an initiative we introduced at Disney is how our health and wellness team developed the Incredible Athlete pilots at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort. The program really integrated physical conditioning instruction with education on sleep and nutrition for optimum performance and is designed to help prevent injuries from occurring. It is very rewarding to know we are helping our cast optimize their performance at home and at work.”
Katie Kelly – Vice President, Worldwide Safety Services
Katie Kelly began her Disney journey nearly 17 years ago as a professional intern. Now, she serves as the Vice President of Worldwide Safety Services for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, where she’s responsible for developing and implementing safety programs that keep the wellness of cast members and guests top of mind.
After receiving her bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and master’s degree in Engineering Management from University of Central Florida, she went on to become a licensed professional engineer in the states of Florida and California.
“The best part about working at Disney is that you get to share what you do with your kids,” said Kelly. “Seeing the joy that my kids have from visiting one of our theme parks is what drives my passion for the job. I want every one of our cast members to be able to experience that joy with their own family and that starts with promoting their safety here at work so that they can go home and enjoy time with their families at the end of the day.”
Dr. Michael Hankins – Chief Physician, Walt Disney World
Dr. Michael Hankins has been with Disney for more than 27 years and serves as the Chief Physician at Walt Disney World Resort. In his role, he provides care for cast members at the Occupational Health Clinic within the park, as well as developing improvements to support the safety of all cast.
Dr. Hankins received his MD from University of Florida and a master’s in public health from Medical College of Wisconsin. From there, he went on to develop a background in Family Medicine with a strong emphasis on preventing illness and injury. In 1995, he worked to computerize our medical operation before most other medical clinics. Today, he is proud to provide cast members with the same level of medical care that he would expect his family to receive.
“The major focus throughout my career has been to advocate for and work toward improving the health and wellness of all cast members,” said Dr. Hankins. “Seeing the ongoing efforts within Disney aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of our cast members and preventing workplace injuries makes it easy for me to remain committed to support these efforts.”
Dr. Gabriel Guo – Chief Physician, Shanghai Disney Resort
Dr. Gabriel Guo has been with Disney for five years, currently serving as the Chief Physician of Shanghai Disney Resort, leading the resort’s medical team that consists of doctors, nurses and other healthcare specialists.
Having studied Clinical Medicine at Peking University in Beijing, China, his team provides health services to both cast members and guests at the resort. In response to COVID-19 related questions from cast members, a special “Ask Dr. Guo” segment was established, allowing Dr. Guo to answer a variety of health-related topics raised by cast members through a question and answer series.
“I believe that what my team and I do makes a difference, since we have the expertise to try to help those who aren’t feeling well,” said Dr. Guo. “We can help our guests and cast members have a healthy and happy experience at our park.”
Joseph Yip – Director of Security, Safety, Fire and Health Services, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort
Joseph Yip has been with Hong Kong Disneyland Resort for 15 years, currently serving as the Director of Security, Safety, Fire and Health Services. In his role, he is responsible for developing and coordinating Disney’s safety and health efforts at the resort for cast members and guests.
Having studied management science at University of Wales, UK, Joseph brings decades of experience to his role at the resort. He was an advocate for the creation of the Safety & Wellness Council and Committee, aimed to help leaders focus on guest safety methods, safety and wellness policies, and programs for cast members. Since 2006, HKDL has received more than 350 safety and wellness awards from different organizations.
“Family, happiness and good memories are the three key drivers that keep me always looking for opportunities to enhance the safety and wellness for our guests, cast members and loved ones,” said Joseph. “Safety is not just a core value of our business – but also an important part of our lives.”
Dr. Nicolas Duport – Medical Doctor, Disneyland Paris
Dr. Nicolas Duport joined the Disneyland Paris team earlier this year, currently serving as a Medical Doctor for the resort. In his role, he is responsible for proposing preventative health measures that aim to benefit the health and wellness of the resort’s cast members. Alongside his colleague, Dr. Cyril Warmberg, they coordinate closely with health, safety and security teams to ensure safety remains the top priority at the resort.
Dr. Duport received his master’s in epidemiology and public health at the University of Nancy I, followed by his doctorate in medicine at the University of Paris VII. He also received his diploma of specialized studies in public health and social medicine in 2003. He previously worked for Santé Publique France, the French equivalent of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as a scientific project manager for nearly 15 years. He also received his qualification in occupational medicine at the University of Reims earlier this year before starting his role with the Disneyland Paris team.
“There are many things unique to Disneyland Paris that I find really exciting, including a diversity of professions, a complete medical team of eight doctors working together within and to support a commercial business – which is very rare in France – and the chance to use all of my specialties in one place,” Dr. Duport said.
These professionals, along with their colleagues and teams will continue to work with their local industry partners, as well as health and government authorities to promote the health and safety of guests and cast members.
We’re looking forward to welcoming all of you back to our Disney parks, resorts and stores. Until we are together once again, we wish you and your families’ health, hope, and happiness!
From our friends at disneyparks.disney.go.com
Filed Under: Uncategorized, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, Shanghai Disney Resort, WDW
As sea turtles are often regarded as sentinels of the ocean, it is only fitting that World Oceans Day is followed by World Sea Turtle Day. Sea turtles captivate us and spark our sense of discovery for the ocean wonders beyond the waves. From the way they gracefully glide through the water – or in Crush’s case, cruise along the EAC- to how they suddenly appear on land after 30 years at sea to lay their eggs and renew the sea turtle life cycle, sea turtles symbolize harmony and serenity in an increasingly chaotic world. While all seven species of sea turtles are either threatened or endangered, there is much we all can do- and are doing- to save them.
Disney Conservation Team Wildlife starts by helping the sea turtles in our own backyard – the beautiful east coast of Florida near Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. Our sea turtle field conservation program, begun in 2003, has grown significantly over the years. More than 50 cast members contribute their time and expertise annually, providing meaningful experiences for more than 40,000 Disney Vacation Club Members and guests. Since our program’s inception, we have documented nearly 17,000 nests from three sea turtle species and recently celebrated the millionth baby sea turtle hatched on our five-mile stretch of beach.
As I write this post, sea turtle nesting season is in full swing here in Florida and the ladies have been busy! We are thrilled to see an increase in both leatherback, our rarest species, and loggerhead sea turtle nests. Check out our current nest numbers below!
In these challenging times, Team Wildlife remains committed to our critical conservation work. Our small, but mighty team of scientists has been on the beach every day this summer conducting sea turtle nest surveys and marking nests to help protect them.
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Based on the number of loggerhead nests we find in Florida, one might think that loggerheads are common. In fact, loggerheads are rapidly declining in many other critical habitats worldwide. We are fortunate that so many turtles nest on beaches near Disney’s Vero Beach Resort and we take our responsibility for conserving them very seriously. Part of our work is evaluating the many potential threats they face – like disturbance during nesting, coastal armoring such as seawalls, artificial light pollution on nesting beaches, plastic pollution, and bycatch and entanglement from fisheries gear. We even monitor our own sea turtle walk program to ensure that it doesn’t negatively impact our turtles.
We are proud of our work on the threats to sea turtles, but know that we can contribute even more. We must take action individually, in our communities, and worldwide. And Disney is doing just that.
We have outfitted Disney’s Vero Beach Resort with sea turtle-friendly lighting to ensure nesting females and hatchlings do not become disoriented on their way back to sea. Additionally, the Disney Conservation Fund has helped protect six species of sea turtles by providing nearly $4 million to support community conservation programs around the world including the TREE Foundation’s sea turtle conservation program in India, the Sea Turtle Conservancy’s Tortuguero program – longest running sea turtle research program in the world, and the Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research at the University of Florida, which is working to reverse the decline of Florida’s sea turtles.
(Credit from left to right: TREE Foundation, Sea Turtle Conservancy, and Alan Bolten)
What can you do to protect sea turtles on this World Sea Turtle Day and beyond? Here are some ideas to get you started:
Minimize your use of single use plastic, and dispose properly of all trash. All waterways lead to the ocean, and plastic floating in city canals eventually ends up in the sea.
Turn your lights off at night. Even if you don’t live near the beach, many wildlife species like birds and bats rely on dark skies to navigate safely.
Choose sustainably sourced seafood. If you’re not sure how to do this, download the Seafood Watch Guide app created by our friends at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Share your love for sea turtles with others! Passion for nature is contagious.
Learn more about sea turtles by visiting Disney Animals, checking out @DrMarkAtDisney for all things animals, science and environment, and following @DisneyConservation’s #BigBlueWorld series on Instagram to learn more about the conservation work we do and support in the big ol’ blue!
The past few weeks, it’s been especially heartwarming to see people come together from across the world to celebrate 2020 graduates in creative and unique ways.
And we knew we had to celebrate our own graduates— nearly 700 cast members and employees who are proud alumni of the Disney Aspire program, the company’s education investment program that pays for 100% of our hourly cast member and employees’ tuition upfront at in-network schools.
That’s why we are sprinkling some pixie dust from afar, recognizing them for an exceptional job well done and celebrating their incredible achievements in making their educational dreams come true.
From successfully completing trade programs to earning high school diplomas and securing Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees — we are so proud of all our Disney Aspire participants who have successfully completed their programs of choice.
Disney Aspire empowers our employees to put their #DreamsWithinReach, and we couldn’t be prouder to see the dreams of our graduates coming true. To all of our Disney Aspire graduates—and to the rest of the 2020 graduates around the globe— thank you for your hard work, dedication, and inspiring all of us to be the best we can be.
Join us in celebrating our grads by using the hashtags #DreamsWithinReach and #DisneyAspire!
As part of #DisneyMagicMoments, we’re offering some fun and creative ideas to help you add a dose of Disney pixie dust to any at-home graduation celebration!
Our special Disney grad pack includes DIY projects and virtual celebration ideas for everyone at home. Show your graduate just how proud you are with these downloadable surprises:
If you’re throwing a virtual celebration in honor of a special graduate, include our themed video chat background for a touch of Disney magic. Our animated background is easy to add to your video event. Simply right-click on the video above and save it to your computer. Then, follow the conferencing platform’s instructions.
You can customize a special graduation banner for a personalized message too. You can customize a special graduation banner for a personalized message too. First, pick which color you’d like. You can choose between yellow, grey, black and red. Then click here to download the instructions!
Also, if you’d like to share words of inspiration for a graduate, download one of our congratulations ecards above.
And of course, a graduation cap is part of the tradition that can add to the feeling of accomplishment! Download instructions for a do-it-yourself cap that can also be customized for a celebrating Disney fan.
Congratulations to the class of 2020! We hope our Disney grad pack adds a touch of Disney magic to your special celebration.
Keep checking back for more #DisneyMagicMoments like this on the Disney Parks Blog.
