Furloughed Disney Cast Member Creates ‘The Cast Member Pantry’ to Help Others Feed Their Families
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Anne Frank
When Walt Disney World employees, also known as Cast Members, were significantly impacted by furloughs and layoffs, a local resident sprang into action to ensure “No Cast Member goes hungry” by creating what’s now known as The Cast Member Pantry. Disney Cast Members and their families in Horizon West, and beyond, have received essential food items since March via this homegrown charitable organization.
An Opportunity to Help Fellow Cast Members
Make a FastPass
Today, The Cast Member Pantry provides essentials food items to hundreds of Cast Members for themselves and their families each week! Now, recipients arrive at a scheduled appointment time and pick-up a pre-packed, reusable shopping bag containing $40-50 of groceries. The bags contain enough food supplies to make breakfast, lunch and dinner and provide snack options for a family of four for approximately four days.
Since inception, the team has filled approximately 126,000 meals through nearly 8,000 appointments, and they are still growing and expanding operations.
Volunteers, largely comprised of current and former Cast Members, devote time shopping, ordering needed items and packing bags in preparation for fast and easy pickup events. The fittingly named ‘FastPass bags’ were a marked improvement.
The Cast Member Pantry Board of Directors VP and fellow Cast Member Kim Schnepf described, “Creating the ‘FastPass bags’ has allowed us to not only better manage inventory, but the model has significantly improved our efficiency. We have also scaled our operation significantly -- increased from filling approximately 60 appointments per week to our largest event, which was
400 appointments in a four-hour period!”
Cast Serving Cast - Now on Both Coasts
Cast Members in California and Hawaii are now being served by the program as well. The Cast Member Pantry team has developed a process using
InstaCart grocery delivery service to facilitate delivery direct to Cast Members’ homes. The delivered bags include the same contents as the ‘FastPass bags’ that would be picked up. With varying community health guidelines for social distancing and Cast living more spread out in the other states, InstaCart delivery is a better fit than the pickup model used here in Horizon West.
“Incorporating the InstaCart process has given us an opportunity to serve so many more families that we may not have been able to reach previously. For example, we had a Cast Member email us asking for support while he is in another state caring for a family member who suffered a stroke. With InstaCart in place, we were able to confidently confirm that we could send a ‘FastPass bag’ direct to his door.”
How You Can Help
Volunteer with Friends or Colleagues
Donate and Spread the Word
Once a Cast Member, Always a Cast Member
The Cast Member Pantry has received generous support from both current and former Cast Members from around the globe, Guests, our local community and even celebrities.
Always in the Club, a charitable fundraiser group comprised of stars from Disney's iconic 'All New' Mickey Mouse Club television show that aired in the 1990’s, are reuniting for the ultimate Christmas album. A portion of proceeds will go toward supporting The Cast Member Pantry.
Josh Gad, the voice of Olaf the magical snowman in Disney’s
Frozen, has joined in to help to spread the word!
How to Receive Food Essentials
For those in need, getting help is as easy as sending an email to
CastMemberPantry@gmail.com. Senders will receive an automated response with information in English and Spanish. From there, they can click a link to register and they will be set up with an appointment for a Saturday pick-up event. Everyone is eligible to register again and return for another bag in 30 days if they are still in need.
The Cast Member Pantry is currently open to any Disney Cast Member or Operating Participant who is furloughed or laid off, as well as those who are part-time with reduced hours or full-time but displaced into a role where they are making less.
Giving Thanks by Giving Back
Many Horizon West residents are tried and true Disney fans and frequent visitors to the parks, resorts, and restaurants. We’ve all likely been the recipients of great service and true magic at the hands of hardworking Cast Members. A great way to give thanks this holiday season is to give back, especially to those who are now in need.
Kim closed our interview by noting, “Helping our Cast family through this difficult time means so much to all of us. It’s truly heartwarming to watch Cast serving Cast and to see them reminding each other just how loved and important they are.”
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/castmemberpantry/
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/castmemberpantry/
Email:
CastMemberPantry@gmail.com
