In the beginning

I had always wanted to work for Disney. When I was little, I would look through books of Disney's artwork and pour through the pages. As I grew older, I learned to draw many of the various Disney characters and had hopes of becoming a Disney animator. I really thought that one day it would happen.

In high school I excelled in art classes, and in college I decided to major in graphic design. Before college began, I told a few people that I wanted to work for Disney. My grades were highest in art, so it seemed a natural path. That was until two things happened. 1. I was shocked at how expensive the art supplies were, and 2. I went to the wrong college to be an art major.

During the first semester, in my Drawing I class, I approached my professor and told him that I wanted to work for Disney and wanted to know how I could pursue such a path. He looked at me as if I had just landed on the planet. He responded to me by saying, "I'd like to know that too! If you figure it out, let me know!" And so ended the path to Disney, for a few years. I dropped my art classes, as they were too expensive to constantly supply, and I changed majors. I became a pre-law Government major. Despite the costs of the textbooks, I could at least hold onto them after taking the class. But the good thing was that I was smart enough to know I was at the wrong school, no matter what major I declared.

Three years later I transferred to JMU. With the hopes of working for Disney still in the back of my mind, I sat and searched through internship opportunities available at the school. As I scrolled through the list of companies offering internships, I finally saw the one word I had been looking for throughout the years: Disney.

As soon as I saw the listing, I clicked on it. My heart raced as I frantically read the information. Yes, Disney recruited for interns, and they would be coming to the campus in a matter of months. Yes, I had come to the right school. I was so excited, I could hardly wait. There were also flyers around for rushing sororities, and despite the fact that I was living with sorority sisters, this internship was the most important event of my young life, and I only had a few months to wait for the interview.