Florida’s largest homeless shelter has received a magical donation from Disney’s wishing wells

Lauren Heath-Jones | Planet Attractions | 05 Dec 2020

Coins were collected from the wishing well by Cinderella’s Castle Credit: Disney
The Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Florida, has raised US$20k (£15,000, €16,700) for charity by collecting coins that guests have tossed into its wishing wells and fountains across the resort.
Coins are periodically collected from the wishing well outside of Cinderella’s Castle and the waterways of the It’s A Small World ride, as well as other fountains in the parks, before being cleaned, sorted and then donated to a local charity.
The Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida - the largest homeless shlter in Central Florida - was selected for the donation due to an increase in homelessness in the region.
Allison Krall, CEO of the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, said: “I’m just so thankful, especially in light of everything that’s going on in the world and everything Disney is going through. We really needed this.”
In addition to the donation, Disney’s chefs prepared a Thanksgiving dinner for more than 650 people at the shelter.
The meal required several kitchens to prepare and included 250lbs of turkey; 300lbs each of mashed potatoes, green beans and cornbread stuffing; 273 litres of gravy and cranberry sauce; 800 dinner rolls and 72 pumpkin and apple pies.
“I’ve participated, like all the Walt Disney chefs do, in the ongoing meals we serve at the coalition, but this will be special, said James O’Donnell, executive chef at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. “This one’s for my community.”
Theme park
|
|






Supplier Showcase 2025: The biggest attractions projects landing worldwide this year
|