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3 local moms land coveted spots on Disney Moms Panel
There must be some kind of Disney spell taking hold in Pasco County, because the Tampa Bay area now has three Disney-savvy moms — all from Pasco County — who have landed a coveted spot on the Disney Moms Panel, an online board of helpers that dispense advice in exchange for a free vacation and other perks.
Deborah Bowen of Land O Lakes and Leslie Krzan of Holiday beat out more than 10,000 other rabid Mouse fans to be among the 15 newest members of the moms panel, joining last year’s panelist Suzannah DiMarzio, of Wesley Chapel, who is staying on as an “alumni panelist.”
In an ingenious use of social media, Disney is in its third year of using a volunteer corps of customer service moms to dish out advice on a range of questions, from restaurants to age-appropriate rides to advice on stroller rentals. In its first year, the cap of 10,000 applications for the two dozens spots was filled in a matter of days. Disney won't release the exact number, but did say the company received more applications than ever.
This year, the Mouse expanded the board to 45 parents, including the 15 newbies announced Friday, who receive vacation packages and other perks for their efforts depending on how much time the devote to the site.
Bowen, left, a Land O’ Lakes mom, is known as the “go-to planner” among her friends, a Disney news release said. She also teaches literature, film and popular arts at the University of South Florida.
Krzan, shown here at right, is a Holiday stay-at-home mom and an expert baker who even had her wedding at Epcot.
Wesley Chapel mom Suzannah DiMarzio, one of our own bloggers on Whoa, Momma!, is among the 30 “alumni panelists” who will continue offering their park-savvy smarts to families planning Disney vacations. She is still dishing here and on her travel-advice blog ZannaLand.
Suzannah, one of our besties here on the Whoa, Momma! blog, was thrilled to continue her Disney ways.
“I was so impressed meeting all the new moms and honored to be ‘dishing on Disney’ along side them,” she said.
--Sharon Kennedy Wynne
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Raising children isn't easy. Whoa, Momma! is here to help you with parenting tips and discussion of all parenting issues. We think there's no such thing as TMI, so our blogging moms aren't shy about the hot topics and won't back away from a good debate. Bottle or breastfeed? Public, private or homeschool? And sex -- it's all open for comment. Don't sit on the sidelines -- pull up a bouncy seat and join the chat.
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THE AUTHORS
Sharon Kennedy Wynne has sunscreen in her blood. She may have been born in Buffalo but she got here as fast as she could, in time for kindergarten. She grew up in St. Petersburg, graduated from the University of Florida journalism school, and even got married at Sunken Gardens. She's one of the few adults we know who actually loves taking her kids to the beach. She has two sons and with 10 years of parenting under her belt, she's starting to feel a little less out of her league. She comes from a large family and loves to debate, so brace yourself when the hot topics come up.
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Freelance writer Courtney Cairns Pastor wasn’t so sure about having kids and how she would balance child-rearing with her journalism career. It turned out that her journalism training went to good use. As the mom to a funny, active toddler, she learned to handle him like she did her sources. Never ask yes or no questions (the answer will always be no), get him to be specific (are you crying because you’re wet or your tooth hurts?) and be prepared for anything because no two days are the same. When she’s not playing trucks, Courtney crams for her book club, trains for races and occasionally bursts into showtunes. E-mail her at 
Suzannah DiMarzio has it bad for the Mouse. Although she grew up outside of Boston, she took her degree in tourism management down to Orlando just to work at Disney and the travel industry. Of course, when she married her high school sweetheart, the reception was at Disney. She’s now a seasoned stay-at-home mom to two tweens and a toddler – and yes, that is as crazy as it sounds. Suzannah has her own blog, Comment Policy
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