Timberpeg Brand Timber Frames

Timberpeg Brand Timber Frames
~ The Artisans of Post & Beam ~

2/17/13

Disney Epcot Memory 1979

Now that our oldest son is a cast member working at Disney in resort management, we reminisce about Disney more than ever since we have been Disney fans for more than 35 years.

In 1979 I graduated college with a degree in Civil Engineering Technology and went to work for a site engineering firm in Westchester County, NY. I remember that first summer seeing an interesting poster on the wall of our lunch room. What caught my attention was a very interesting drawing that looked like some type of “futuristic city” plan. It was actually an advertisement by WED Enterprises, (Walt Elias Disney), or known today as WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering), The Walt Disney Company. They were looking for junior engineers and engineering technicians to work on the new EPCOT (Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow) Center in Walt Disney World, FL.
They were offering casting roles from1979 to1982.

Although I was married at the time but without children, this sounded like a fun adventure. So, a coworker of mine and I called Disney (there were no cell phones or email at that time). When we learned that most of the work would be in the field outdoors in the Florida heat we decided to pass. (Having an air-conditioned NY office job, the thought of working in the blazing Florida sun was a bit daunting).

In 1981, I went back to school at SUNY Buffalo and got my Masters degree in Architecture, but have often thought “what if” we had gone to work for Disney building EPCOT; perhaps I would be a Disney Imagineer today.