After IV
Roller Coasters, Fairytales & Waiting in Line: When Alumni Life is a Walk in the (Theme) Park
 
Podcast Intro – (Upbeat acoustic guitar music)

Jon Steele  0:09  
Hey everyone. I'm Jon Steele. And this is After IV a podcast for InterVarsity alumni. Life after college is hard. And even a great experience with your InterVarsity chapter doesn't shield you from the challenges of transition. As we hear stories from real alumni learning how to make it in their post- InterVarsity reality, my hope is that this podcast will offer some encouragement, a few laughs, and even some hope for the future. This is after IV. And these are your stories.

Welcome

Jon Steele
Hello, hello, and welcome to After IV, the podcast for InterVarsity alumni. I'm your host Jon Steele. Now today is our last episode before we take a short two week break, but then we'll be back in mid April with 10 brand new episodes for you. And those conversations are really going to focus in on some skills and mindsets that are going to help you navigate those early days right after graduation. We're going to talk about transition in general and how to navigate it. Well. We're going to talk about markers of a healthy church calling living with roommates sharing the gospel, we're gonna cover a bunch of things that are going to help you better navigate that new season of life. I'm really excited to share that with you. For today though, we're going to be hanging out with Betsy and alumna who works in a dream world a world of magic of Once Upon a Time of in a galaxy far, far away of Avengers Assemble. Yes, you guessed it, Betsy works at the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando. We're going to hear Betsy story of coming to work for Disney even though it was not her original intent. So we're going to hear about her Disney focus Church, which is super interesting. And Betsy also has some really solid encouragement for what it looks like to thrive after graduation. As you would expect from someone whose full time gig is hanging out in the world of Disney. I'm confident that Betsy is going to leave you walking away from this conversation full of cheer, and maybe even feeling a little magical. Here's Betsy, this one's for you alumni. 
 
Musical Interlude
 
Interview

Jon Steele
Hello, Betsy. How are you doing?

Betsy Bourne  2:12  
Oh, I am living the dream really happy to be here and just happy to be.

Jon Steele  2:17  
That's awesome. You know, most people when they say that they're living the dream. They mean it sarcastically but I want to believe that somebody who works for Disney when they say they're living the dream, they actually mean it. 

Betsy Bourne  2:29  
You know, I truly, sincerely mean it. I would say about 99% of the time that I say.

Jon Steele  2:37  
I'm glad to hear that. Hey, Betsy, would you just give us a quick introduction. Tell us a little bit about who you are, what you do things that you enjoy doing. Who are you, Betsy?

Betsy Bourne  2:46  
Yes, well, my name is Betsy and professionally. I am a leadership development manager for operations training at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. Wow. So let's explain what that means. So if you've ever been to the Walt Disney World Resort and checked in at a front desk, or had a housekeeper clean your room or visited one of our restaurants bought what we like to call tangible memories in a merchandise shop even written one of the rides. All of those places have different managers. I am responsible for the internal process to help our employees who we like to call cast members get promoted into those roles, as well as then training them out what it means to be not just a manager, but a leader. So that takes up the majority of my time. But when I'm not on the clock, every once in a while go to our theme parks and our other resort amenities that I also really enjoy baking. My friends call me Betsy Crocker, so my office tends to have some sweets. And I also really enjoy attending live theatre. So we have professional shows that come through here. We also have a robust community theater in Central Florida, because a lot of our theme parks and resorts have world class entertainment. And those folks like to entertain and maybe do different types of roles and experiences outside of day to day bringing Disney or other stories to life. So those are some of the things that I like to do in my spare time, alongside working out walking my dog, things like that.

Jon Steele  4:14  
Betsy, do you have like a background in theater music? Is there anything from there that sort of drew you into this?

Betsy Bourne  4:21  
You know, I do have a background in those things. But that's not why I ended up at Disney and to be candid, Disney was not even what I had imagined for my story. So I'm really thankful that God's placed me here. Growing up, I enjoyed singing, dancing, I did show choir I like to sing and my worship band and my youth group growing up but didn't really think about it as a career. But then I heard about something called the Disney College Program. I needed required internships while I was at school, studying hospitality and tourism management at Purdue University thinking I wanted to work at a hotel. So I ended up spending six months working for Disney at the front desk of some of our resorts really enjoyed it, but actually realized that being an operator working the front desk at a hotel wasn't my dream job. And so when I went back to school, I was not planning on returning. But Disney was the only place that offered me a job. Thankfully, it was in an industry that I had fallen in love with because of Disney, and that was in training and development.

Jon Steele  5:24  
Now I have what feels like probably a stereotypical question to ask you, but I'm going to ask it anyways, as somebody who is so deeply involved in the world of Disney, do you yourself have a favorite Disney moment or character or genre? What's your favorite out of the Disney World?

Betsy Bourne  5:45  
Oh, well, that's a dangerous question because we could spend the rest of your time I'll share too. First I'll share that my favorite Disney character is named Giselle, she is the princess and main character from enchanted. Recently on Disney Plus, they released a sequel called disenchanted, but I love that character portrayed by Amy Adams because of what she represents that movie and chanted came out a little bit tongue in cheek it's a little bit of a cambier film really playing into the stereotypes of a Disney princess story. But what you find in Giselle is she goes from the animated world of Andalusia to the not so magical real world of New York City is she still can maintain that magic spark because Hate to break it to everybody. Magic isn't real, but qualities of goodness are. So I love what she represents in that there are nuggets of truth that can be found in these stories that can help sustain us. And that's what I love about Giselle. And as I think about a favorite Disney moment, I had the chance during my college internship, that Disney College Program, I made friends from all over the world, they sincerely do bring friends from multiple countries to come and work at Disney. Some work at Epcot, one of our theme parks representing the nations that are part of that theme park. Others do just come and work those hospitality roles. So I had the pleasure of becoming really good friends with some folks from England and New Zealand and Mexico. And now 11 years later, we're all still really close. And one of my favorite things that's happened over these years is biasing in touch, we've been able to reconnect at major life milestones. So I met my husband actually here at through my church at a Disney event. Ironically, as we were preparing to get married, my friends from England in New Zealand came back to the United States for the first time since that program visited us stayed with us. And we had the chance to have a private fireworks viewing. I'll never forget sitting on this dock with my friends that I hadn't seen in six years just getting to celebrate since then have had a chance to go then witness weddings of theirs and just celebrate all over the world. So there's really cool things that the company has done for me that are more than magic, because they're real.

Jon Steele  8:03  
I like that how that parallels some of your feelings about enchanted taking magic out of this magical world into the real world that goodness does exist. There are themes of goodness for us to be able to pull out of these things in that you've gotten to experience that in your real life. Now there's some really great stories and it does seem like Disney has had a pretty positive significant impact on you and your experiences.

Betsy Bourne  8:25  
Yes, it has. In fact, Jon, the church I go to our main demographic and focus is Walt Disney World employees. Oh, that's so cool. It has been life changing. For me. InterVarsity was such a great stepping stone to encourage me to continue to pursue my walk with the Lord as I graduated into find a true church home as I came down here was trying to find a church home I one day saw on social media, just this invitation for cast members to come visit this church. As I arrived. It wasn't Disney focused, we don't sing Disney songs. Sometimes the illustrations that our teaching pastors would use were because they're also seasonal or part time employees at Disney so they get the work. We're going through the to get the crazy hours. Some of our ministry events are just handing out thank you notes in the theme parks and in the resorts to help cast members know that they're seen as real people. It has been amazing to see that Disney almost as like a reverse mission trip because the world comes here. So it's neat to be in a place to get to be a gospel presents and gospel voice not only to my coworkers, but any guests that happened to be here just for a short amount of time.

Jon Steele  9:37  
That's really interesting. I mean, we're talking contextualized ministry hear things that people can so closely identify with because it's the world that they live in Disney cast member focused ministry so contextualized and meaningful that is super cool.

Betsy Bourne  9:51  
We like to think of it is uncommon love. It's not just our friends bringing characters to life. It's the person handing you your french fries. If person asking you to not cross the street because fireworks are about to go up. And they've probably been yelled at all day. So you might be the first person to look them in the eye and say thanks for keeping me safe. And so it's even just moments like that that can lead to maybe a moment of gospel truth being light, and salt.

Jon Steele  10:16  
You know, one of the questions I oftentimes ask is, what are the ways that you get to live out your faith and your current context, and we're starting to hear some of those stories. Let's talk about some of the past that led you to that place. So you said that you went to Purdue that you were studying in this world of hospitality. But somewhere along the way here, you got involved with InterVarsity, that you said, was this really important stepping stone in your faith, helping you continue growing in your faith after graduation? How did you get connected InterVarsity in the first place?

Betsy Bourne  10:44  
So InterVarsity actually came into my life. When I returned from that Disney internship, when I came down to Disney, for the first time, church was not a priority. walking with the Lord was not a prayer it was it was just a little bit of survival mode. But in those moments, I had never had God show up for me, so tangibly, so I knew when I returned to school, that I needed to do something to continue to pursue that relationship and really make it my own. So I was actually plugged in to university through Greek IV, since I was the member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority, I was seeking Bible studies, I tried out a couple of local campus churches, but one of my sorority sisters, our President, at the time, she had had a small discipleship group that she had been with her entire collegiate career through Greek IV. And I thought that would just be an interesting space, not only just to have a small group of other women to connect with that were eager to jump into God's word, but also a space to really celebrate the innate values of the Greek system, getting to meet and connect and find those similarities between women and other sororities. And so it was really sweet to me to have gals from other houses from other maybe life experiences. But knowing that we have this common thread between us was really, really special. I had the chance to learn how to study the Bible on my own, I very much was a grades focused person always seeking the right answers. And so it was hard for me originally to find the quote unquote, answers in Scripture myself, I was waiting to be told those. So I was really thankful for IV giving me that space. To explore how to do that independently, I was given the appropriate context, the way to study scripture, from a genre perspective, from a language perspective, to start picking up themes and be able to have conversations to better understand who God is and what he wants to be for us and do with us to further his kingdom. 

Jon Steele  12:42  
Wow, that's amazing. I mean, just in this church ministry context, you find yourself in being able to understand Scripture and understand it well enough to be able to contextualize it to this very unique culture to say like, How can I tell these stories in a way that really hit home for the cast members, having that background sounds like, gosh, you've had some really great tools you've been able to bring with you.

Betsy Bourne  13:03  
Yes, and I sincerely can't thank my discipleship group leader enough, because even from there as I departed from Purdue when I did graduate, when I moved down here, I didn't have any roommates, I truly moved down to Orlando by myself. And so finding a faith community and plugging in because of university had the tools to discern strong gospel centered Bible teaching churches and communities that allow me to find what has become my faith community that really has shaped my life, and even given me the confidence and tools to jump into leadership capacities. When I returned to Disney, when I moved down here for what became full time I was an intern again, but just in a different space, I found an intern Bible study, because I was using those tools that I was taught through InterVarsity. That gave me the confidence when I was asked to step in and teach every once in a while to do so. So it can take a lot of courage, but just diving in as best you can, getting these tools and resources just like you're getting in your collegiate level classes. Man, it really sets you up for a world of continuous discovery, deeper relationship with the Lord and even just equipping others to understand the beauty that's in these words.

Jon Steele  14:18  
Absolutely. That is so great. Betsy, as we're starting to bridge the gap here from college experiences to your post graduation experiences. You know, we all go into the season of graduation with expectations of what's going to come next and you've shared a couple of these things. You had done this internship with Disney, you said you didn't intend to go back but post graduation. They were like the only ones that had a position ready to hire you into is that correct? 

Betsy Bourne  14:45  
Yes. That is correct. I had no intentions of leaving the Midwest. I think the Midwest is the mid best.

Jon Steele  14:52  
Yeah, me either. Wow. 

Betsy Bourne  14:55  
Yes. Yes. And when I was called down here, I thought it was maybe going to be for a year or two. And that gave me the confidence to say yes. And I think giving that over to the Lord, sharing my expectations, obviously, we all have them, but being open to what the Lord has for you in those plans, because I've now been down here for nine years, I met my husband, we bought a house, we have a dog, little ones on the way. So just you ever had the Lord's gonna do with your willingness to say yes to those things, and being okay that maybe your dreams or expectations don't line up. Even at that exact moment, it could come back, we very may well go back to the Midwest, who knows, wherever God calls us. I even think about where he sent Jesus, where he St. Paul, where he sent the disciples and apostles, they were all over the place that they had those open hands. And so sometimes they feel a little bit like that. But again, God has his hands all over these things.

Jon Steele  15:53  
When you transitioned into this post graduation life, were there places that felt harder than you expected? Were there places that felt easier than you expected? Comparing expectation to reality?

Betsy Bourne  16:04  
Yes, making friends in a new place is hard. Making friends in a non scheduled place is hard. While the college experience feels very independent, and don't get me wrong, it is it was one of the most transformative seasons of my life. Once you graduate and you don't have set classes, you don't have specific clubs right in front of you, you are in a confined space with however many students, administrators, professors, professionals you find on your campus, finding your inroads are hard. And for many of us as we graduate, for some, it might be your first time truly living on your own alone. I know many people do go into the roommate space. But figuring that out in the postgraduate world is sticky, it's hard. And sincerely just finding people you genuinely want to spend time with is hard. It might not be your work colleagues. When I moved down here, everybody on my team was at least 10 years older than me. So I was not hanging out with my work colleagues. So I had to make courageous choices to go find spaces in which to make friends. And so for me, I chose church to do that. But there were other spaces too. I did pick up a second job. I had worked in the Midwest, I worked at a women's retail store. So just brought that employment down here for something easy, something fun, something not mindless, but something I was comfortable with, chose to find a local community choir to do Ironically, it was through Disney, they they offer a Christmas show that if you work as an employee, you can audition and sing it. And that just opened me up to different connections. But I had to choose to spend my time, at the very least just trying out these different things. Maybe it's a sports league for you. Maybe it's joining a gym, even if you don't like working out, maybe there's a fun class you want to do. Maybe there's a book club, maybe there's a dog walking group, maybe there's an architecture appreciation for if you're in a big city or something. But the time it takes to make friends and build relationships, especially if you're in a new place is hard. So I want to acknowledge that and just please note, oh my gosh, I'll be praying for the listeners of this podcast, because that takes time. But it's it's really special when you find those friendships, and of course, maintain the ones that you made in college and elsewhere. But it is neat as some of your friendships post graduation, because they're a little bit more out of your true volition and choice, not the ones in college university experience aren't just how rich those can become. Absolutely. And if I can be an encouragement on the other side, I know you asked what are some things that you were surprised were perhaps easier? Yeah, please, everybody. You're in more adulty than you think you are. You can do adult things.

Jon Steele  18:56  
Yes, you can. 

Betsy Bourne  18:59  
You can, regardless of what your background looked like what your housing situation looked like. I remember feeling a little bit of pride when I was able to maintain a relatively tidy home when I was like I can do my chores and I have pride in keeping my space clean. I can cook a relatively healthy meal. I can budget at the grocery and figure out foods that I enjoy making and eating. I can navigate my new city mean thank goodness for technology that allows us to not have to open a big old map in our car or map our routes ahead of time not turning all of my laundry pink. I mean granted, I've been doing my laundry well before college, but just remembering those little things just to be able to survive when you survive a week. Like that's something worth celebrating, especially when you're out on your own for the first time when you are truly managing your time, your finances your space. Those are all things to celebrate. While they don't teach us a lot of that in school, I still am not very good at doing my own taxes or things like that very grateful for people that study that and can assist me added it to my budget to have somebody helped me do that, but never discount the small victories of just what it means to human decently well.

Jon Steele  20:20  
Yeah, that's really great. It feels like there's some of those every day things that are just easy for us to gloss over. There's the things and they are very important, like, don't get me wrong, but they're these things that like feel like they're not going well. And it's just so easy to zoom in on those and make those frustrations kind of our entire life, as opposed to saying like, even if they're tiny, what are the 100 Other things that actually are going really well, that are indicators of it is possible for me to thrive in this new context. And I do have what it takes to be able to Yeah, to clean up after myself and to make the meals that I need to eat and to get myself to work on time and to take risks at checking out different churches and trying to meet new friends, even if something doesn't work out the fact that you took the risk and tried, that's the win right there. And if you can keep doing that, you might miss a whole lot of times, but eventually, because you keep trying, you are going to make it and something is going to come from all of that hard work. The win is trying for so many of these things. And and I think that we forget that, I really appreciate that perspective, Betsy, of of taking an account of those little things you can human, you can adult better than you might think you can. And we can surprise ourselves. And that's a really positive thing for us to keep in mind for sure. Based on the experiences that you've had. So far, Betsy, and these years post graduation, is there any advice that you would give to a senior like if you had a seniors ear or somebody who has just graduated, if you had their ear for just a moment? What is a piece of advice that you would give to them?

Betsy Bourne  21:55  
First and foremost, congratulations, you're almost there. If I could give you any piece of advice, it would be that the first job you take is not going to be your last one. Don't stress, important to find something that brings you joy, but know that it's not going to be forever. And that's okay. I know it's so stressful as people are getting their fellowships lined up, or these contracts for multi year things, you might not have anything lined up. And that's okay. Even if there isn't a job, when you get your graduation tassel and get to turn it to the other side, something will come because you've spent time investing in yourself and your brain and your heart and your soul that will come. And even if you have to for adulting sake, right? Maybe take some sort of job to pay the bills, you can be a gospel presence in that place, too. Like I shared when I moved down here again, Disney What did not feel like my colleagues, I also had to take that second job for something easy to do that I felt comfortable with. That was also to help pay the bills to live on your own in Central Florida. Not easy, not fun. So I had to I really had to take that second job just to pay the bills. But that wasn't forever. Neither of those jobs are still my jobs. And I've learned so much because of them. So if it's not the dream job straight out the gate, that's okay.

Jon Steele  23:24  
Absolutely. Gosh, what a great encouragement, it's so easy to think that like if you don't have a job lined up right after graduation, that you've really missed the mark. Or if you get into the job that you spent a whole bunch of time studying for and you're like, oh, shoot, this actually doesn't feel quite right, you're in good company. Because many of us have had that exact experience. And there are more opportunities down the road, it's a matter of waiting, and some of it is just a matter of sometimes you just got to grind for a little bit. That's just the way it is. There's nothing wrong with that. Keep your eyes and ears open. But be faithful to the work that you have been given until it's time to move on to something else. That is super encouraging. Betsy, I wish she'd been there when I graduated to remind me of that, because that is a really great word. So thank you for that. Betsy, this has been a lot of fun. Can I just say in this little bit of time that we've had together, just your personality, the way that you talk about the world around you, the work that you're doing and the context that you're doing it in just it makes a lot of sense. You seem to like fit so well, what I would expect from somebody who does what you do, and who does it with Disney. In particular, it's clear that the Lord has gifted you to have a personality and a joy and a way of thinking that fits this. And so thank you for being an alum who is using the gifts that God has given you to do the work that you're doing. And thanks a lot for sharing that with us today.

Betsy Bourne  24:47  
Thank you mean all the glory to Him. It wouldn't be possible none of it at all without just saying yes to what the Lord's had for me. So thank you so much to InterVarsity and thanks for this great conversation.
 
Musical Interlude
 
Wrap up

Jon Steele  25:01  
Have you ever felt so encouraged that simple things like doing your laundry and getting to work on time are actually signs that you're doing this after graduation thing, right? Sometimes I just need that reminder that those small but consistent rhythms are important markers of success. It's not all about finding the perfect job right away or getting that new friend group rounded out immediately. It's also about can I make the simple, consistent, healthy decisions that keep my head on straight while I work out the bigger stuff over time? Alumni you are, we are more capable than we think of navigating this new phase of life? It's hard, no question, but it is doable, and you will keep getting better at it over time. Betsy, thank you so much for joining us for this episode and for sharing your wisdom and experiences with us. Keep blessing others at Disney with your joyful spirit and the love of Jesus. And congrats again on your growing family. Enjoy that happily ever after together. For the rest of you. That's it for this week. I will see you again on April 18. When we come back from our short break and hang out with our next guest Cathy Xiao Cathy's gonna walk us through a really helpful framework for navigating transition, Kathy has experienced significant transitions in her own life personally, you'll get to hear some of her stories around transitions from undergrad to internships to grad school in a new city. And she also deals with transition professionally as she helps guide ministry teams through supervisory changes and sabbaticals. It's one of those conversations that I really wish I'd had before graduating. So whether you're a listener who's nearing graduation, or one who's recently entered the post graduation life, this will be really, really helpful for you. So come back on April 18, for that conversation, and for the kickoff to our new series. 
 
Podcast Outro – (Upbeat acoustic guitar music)

Hey, thanks so much for joining us today. Alumni. If there was anything that you learned, really enjoyed, or they encouraged you from today's episode, would you send us a DM or tag us in a story? We'd love to hear about it. You can find us @afterivpod on Instagram and Facebook. And if you haven't already, take just a second to unlock your phone and subscribe to the podcast. If your platform lets you leave us a rating and a review. And if you like what we're doing here, share us with your InterVarsity or other post graduation friends. Thanks again for listening. And I will see you in the after alumni

Transcribed by https://otter.ai