Disney Delight
My wife, Devyn, loves Disney. Disney trips were a huge part of her childhood and like the amazing mom that she is, she wants to ensure, as do I, that the kids have memories of exciting times at Disney and other life events rather than cheap or expensive toys.
We have not always had the greatest “magical” experiences at Disney but for the majority of our times visited there, it has been a great time. As it goes with the nature of theme parks, there are lines, and some stupid long ones for that matter. But Disney has a plan in place for long lines and this option does not include having to fork over a ridiculous amount of money to get on the ride faster.
Disney understands that there are people that visit their parks that have disabilities or other medical issues that prevent some from waiting in the long lines. I’m a veteran and served for seven years and one deployment. For me, large crowds of people or close proximity can be a concern for me. For people like me, Disney has a program called DAS and this requires me to renew this perk every 90 days but it allows me to ask for “call back times”. Whatever the current wait time is, they reserve my spot in that line and I come back after the time has concluded. If the line is 120 minutes, I come back after 120 minutes and they let us enter through the fast pass line. I am very appreciative of this.
That being said, I recently had to go renew my DAS status. While waiting in Magic Kingdom’s quest services line I began talking to one of the cast members, Brandon. He asked if we were going to be around for the 5:00 PM flag ceremony. I inquired about it and he replied that he had been looking for a veteran all day to participate in the daily flag retreat ceremony.
I looked at Devyn and she was on board with it and so we agreed to meet back prior to the ceremony to make sure we knew what to do. We returned and went through our walk through to ensure I fully understood their process and what to expect. We took some pictures before it started and then we heard the drum line starting from behind the scenes. It was go time and the color guard leader called the detachment to attention. We snapped to attention and the parade band, the singing quartet and a large group of cast member came out playing various marching and patriotic songs. The announcer introduced the band, the color guard, and me by name.
As the flag was methodically and ceremonially lowered down the flag pole flapping in the wind, another member grabbed the flag and they began to stretch it out and fold. Keep in mind that this was a two thirds civilian detachment and the third cast member was a veteran as well, while I wait for the flag to be folded. It wasn’t the best fold of a flag by any means, but they meant well and they took pride in it. The flag was folded and handed off to me. We began to march away from the square and down Main Street directly towards the castle. We right turned down a side ally way and concluded the march; this was the end, or so I thought.
As we were standing there concluding the marching portion I handed over the flag for a moment for an unexpected surprise. All of the cast members, band members and bystanders were all lined up. One by one they all walked towards me asking to shake my and thanked me for my service. It was a humbling experience and I looked in the background where I see my wife with a beaming smile and tears rolling down her face. More civilians and other veterans came and thanked me and I reciprocated. There was even a young girl about my daughter’s age that came to thank as well.
More pictures ensued and we got take some special family pictures. I was presented with a certificate or the days event and given a Disney pin. These pins are normally for purchase or for trade. However this is an exclusive veteran pin for this event specifically. To conclude what I thought was just going to be a retreat of the flag and hand it off turned into a visit to Disney I won’t soon forget. It finished with front side street access to the Main Street parade and the characters knew where to look when walking by. Woody and Jessy from Toy Story and other wonderful childhood movie classic characters all rendered a salute, a wave, or a thank you gesture as they walked by. One character issues a salute and per tradition if you do not salute back they keep the salute until the parade is over. I respectfully gave the salute and we both carried on.
This ceremony is done daily at 5 PM since the park opened in the 70’s. I am humbly grateful for this experience. I am overwhelmed with the gratitude the park expressed to me and other veterans alike. This was nearly a 45 minute experience and I’m so thankful that camera guy attached to the event got so many great shots. This trip is one for the story books.
If you see a service member or a veteran, make sure to thank them for their service and sacrifice. Remember, not all wounds are visible, you never know what someone is or has gone through.
-Rick
