Disney fanatics: Canadian family ties Disney to engagement, wedding, honeymoon
Krista Duncan was too enchanted with the fireworks in front of the Magic Kingdom’s iconic Cinderella Castle to realize her boyfriend was proposing.
She assumed he was just digging in the camera bag until Phil Duncan tugged at her pants leg for her to look down and see him on bended knee.
That was the start of the Duncan family’s milestones tied to Walt Disney Co.
“Disney became synonymous with us and our story,” Krista Duncan said.
They got married back in Ottawa, Canada, their home, in 2007.
She surprised him at their wedding when the DJ announced there was a special guest, and in marched the intimidating 501st Legion of Imperial Stormtroopers from “Star Wars.”
Then everyone partied.
“It was fun seeing Darth Vader and Stormtroopers doing the YMCA, and the aunts and uncles getting into it,” said Krista Duncan, 37, a marketing and event coordinator.
Phil Duncan was so impressed, he later joined the legion — a group of “Star Wars” fans known for dressing up and doing charity work.
Afterward, the couple honeymooned at Disneyland Paris.
“It is the escapism,” said Phil Duncan, 45, who visited Walt Disney World for the first time in his early 30s.
At Disney, there is no boss to worry about, no money issues nagging on the brain, no real-life problems to stress over. He rides the Haunted Mansion, his favorite, that puts him into a world of haunted graveyards and spooky corridors instead.
When they had their children, they researched names with Disney connections, although they avoided the outrageous. They settled on Jack, a family name that pays homage to Captain Jack Sparrow from “Pirates of the Caribbean,” and Max, the name of Goofy’s son.
The couple drinks their coffee out of Disney mugs. Their bathroom is stocked with Disney towels. The family wears matching shirts to the movie theater to see the latest Disney flick, and the Duncans travel to Orlando at least once a year.
Krista and Phil, who works as an assistant facilities manager at a medical school, celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary last year at Walt Disney World.
Next on their list is plotting where to get matching Mickey tattoos to remember where everything began.
“People are almost used to it,” Krista said. “There are still some people who are like, ‘You’re going back to Disney again?’”
To read other stories in this series:
- Florist’s home blooms with theme-park decor
- New York family tries to jog memories of 38 visits in 14 years
- At Universal Studios, college student says he rode E.T. Adventure 56 times in one day
- Couple builds cupboard under stairs in tribute to Harry Potter
Are you a theme park fanatic? Contact us and we’ll consider profiling you in the Orlando Sentinel. grusson@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5470; Twitter, @GabrielleRusson
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