EPCOT Security Cast Member Joe Diaz has been honored by Disney for saving a four year old last December.
Walt Disney World President Jeff Vahle, along with Vice President of Security, Linda Reid, and Vice President of EPCOT, Kartika Rodriguez, honored Diaz with the Disney Heroes Award. This award is given to Cast Members when they “save a life or prevent serious injury.”
According the the Instagram post, Mr. Diaz was on his way home last December when he jumped into a pond to enter a partially flooded car. Once inside he kept an entrapped four-year-old’s head up above the water until emergency teams could get them out.
With so many bad things happening, it’s so wonderful and uplifting to hear a story like this one.
Here’s Vahle’s post from Instagram:
View this post on Instagram
Here’s the transcription from the Instagram Post:
“On his way home last December, EPCOT Security Cast Member Joe Diaz leapt into a pond, entered a partially flooded car, and kept a trapped four-year-old’s head above water until emergency teams could arrive and free him. This week, it was my honor to join Vice President of Security, Linda Reid and Vice President of EPCOT, Kartika Rodriguez in recognizing Joe with the Disney Heroes Award, given to Cast Members who save a life or prevent serious injury. What an amazing individual!
#DisneyHeroes
#SavingLives
#ExceptionalCast”
The Disney Heroes Award is a five-year-old program that “commends heroic acts performed by Disney employees in and outside the workplace.“
Employees can submit a nomination for a fellow Cast Member that performs a “live-saving act.”
“The five-year-old program was established to commend heroic acts performed by Disney employees in and outside of the workplace. Any employee from across The Walt Disney Company can submit a nomination on behalf of a colleague who performs a life-saving act, whether it’s clearing the airway of a choking victim or reporting a life-threatening security issue to authorities. Since the program launched, more than 100 Disney Heroes Awards have been awarded to teams and employees around the world — from Tokyo to Germany and in the U.S.”
In five years over 100 awards have been given. Wow!
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