At 44, He Left Church Ministry and Moved to Florida to Become a Disney World Bus Driver: ‘Like a Dream Come True’ (Exclusive)

Colson ThayerThu, November 12, 2026 at 11:15 AM UTC

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Michael Bowen boards a Walt Disney World bus.Credit: Michael Bowen -

Michael Bowen spent decades in church ministry before pursuing a career at Disney World

He made the move in January 2020, but had to wait weeks before he could start on the job

A 2022 divorce led Bowen to leave Florida behind for Oregon, until a new romance blossomed and he returned to the resort in April 2026

Sitting poolside at Disney’s All-Star Resort over Thanksgiving break in 2017, Michael Bowen looked around at the Florida sunshine, dreaded the blizzard waiting back home in New Jersey, and made a radical choice.

For decades, Michael had dedicated his life to church ministry — a path he chose in his twenties not out of personal passion, but out of a desire to make a church mentor happy. By his forties, he was driving a school bus part-time just to make ends meet.

Facing burnout and a life that felt unfulfilling, Michael decided to hit the reset button. In 2020, at age 44, he packed his bags and relocated to Central Florida and applied for a job driving buses at Walt Disney World.

Michael Bowen poses for a photo inside a Walt Disney World bus.Credit: Michael Bowen

“I loved every minute of it,” Michael, now 51, tells PEOPLE of those first few weeks on the job. “It was like a dream come true… I would say, ‘Just pinch me, because I can’t believe this is real’ ”

Michael says he was inspired to go after the job after watching the bus drivers on his own trips to the vacation destination.

“I was fascinated by the equipment that I saw on their dash and the little GPS and noticing the turn and seeing how they interacted with guests,” Michael remembers.

However, the job didn’t come easily. It took Michael several months to get an interview, and he needed a Florida driver’s license to qualify. He moved to the state on Jan. 1, 2020, but didn’t get to start working until mid-February. During those “six weeks of anticipation,” Michael did all he could to “immerse” himself in the Disney culture, including visiting the parks, resorts and Disney Springs.

Barbie and Michael Bowen pose for a photo at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom park.Credit: Michael Bowen

For the first time in his life, Michael had a stable job with benefits including paid time off, pensions, retirement and health insurance.

It was a job he thought he would keep forever; however, a painful divorce in 2022 meant he would relocate to Oregon and leave Disney World buses. “It was difficult because I love Disney,” Michael says. “I spent years trying to get there, and I realized I had to leave knowing that I may never come back.”

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But the Disney magic never escaped his life. In Oregon, Michael continued producing content for his Disney-centered YouTube channel Incognito Mouse. Through his videos, he went on to meet the “love of his life,” another Disney fan named Barbie, 43. In 2025, the couple decided they would relocate, which meant a move back to Central Florida for Michael.

Like before, Michael had to go through a lengthy process to secure a job at the parks. In the meantime, he found a position driving for a different company contracted to operate buses for Universal Orlando Resort.

Michael and Barbie Bowen pose for a photo at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida.Credit: Michael Bowen

In April 2026, at 50 years old, Michael is once again employed at Disney World.

“I drive for the Most Magical Place on Earth. Every night, when I’m driving through Disney property, I get to see the fireworks as I’m driving down the road. I see Space Mountain or I see the Tower of Terror… You just can’t get that anywhere else,” Michael says.

It’s the little moments that make his days, including one interaction with a little boy who presented Michael with two toy buses as he was boarding the vehicle.

“I don’t get to play Jack Sparrow walking through the park. I don’t get to be up on stage dancing or doing things. I drive a bus. It’s not the most glamorous job, but for this little boy, it meant everything.”

For those looking to reinvent themselves later in life, Michael suggests looking to the words of Walt Disney himself.

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“He said, ‘If you can dream it, you can do it,’” Michael explains. “I don’t think there’s a lot of things that would hold us back so bad that we just can’t do it, whether it’s financial or whether it’s marriage or whether it’s a job, because I had all those problems. If you want it bad enough, you’ll make it happen. You’ll make sacrifices and you’ll find other people around you who will motivate you.”

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”