Silver Dollar City looks to recruit tomorrow's theme park creators
Silver Dollar City is looking for kids to help dream up its next big idea.
The Missouri theme park has put a call for children ages 5-12 to apply for its Mini Miners Crew. This isn't just a passive fan club. Silver Dollar City is asking would-be Mini Miners to submit a video where they share their big idea for the park. Ideas could include new rides, shows, food, games, or crafts that could be featured at the park.
Or, "something no grown-up has ever thought of before," the park said.
In exchange, the park will send selected participants a custom welcome kit in the mail, complete with an official Mini Miners Crew light-up helmet, personalized membership certificate, and club T-shirt. Silver Dollar City also will have a meet-up at the park for the Mini Miners on August 14.
Silver Dollar City depicts Ozark mountain life in the 1880s, and what could be more nineteenth century than child labor? Moving beyond my snarky joke, it's nice to see a theme park looking for fresh ways to engage the next generation of fans.
"At its heart, the Mini Miners Crew is about much more than what arrives in the mail," Senior Publicity Manager Brandei Clifton said. "It's about celebrating the spirit of creativity, craftsmanship and family that built Silver Dollar City from the ground up. We’re so excited to meet our miners."
Applications are open through June 30 to all U.S. children ages 5-12. Parents must submit their child's application and video and complete a consent form. That's all available on the Silver Dollar City website.
I loved this kind of stuff when I was a kid and am thrilled that a park is providing this opportunity to today's young fans. Though I do hope that if any child does come forward with an idea that the park actually ends up using that the kid gets much more than a T-shirt. This promotion could be a great way to identify some future creative talent whose skills and education SDC owner Herschend could nurture and invest in.
At the very least, the Mini Miners Crew promotion should inspire some kids to believe that someone out there cares what they think and wants to encourage them.
Replies (5)
Quick, someone teach them about Mack Hyper coasters!
Wow maybe I should apply, I often act like a 12 year old....HAHAHAHAHAH
I'm always skeptical of these sort of company-initiated fan forums/focus groups that portray themselves as ways for selected groups to help guide business decisions. It feels even more slimy when they leverage kids to make them think they have influence, when the reality is that a program like this is nothing more than a PR stunt.
I hope to be proven wrong here, because if implemented correctly, a theme park could learn a lot from young minds that have limitless imagination and little understanding of the laws of physics or engineering principles that often leads to novel ideas.
Listen, I have experience in theme park design and a 4 year old... this could be fun.
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I don't know if Silver Dollar City intentionally picked a name for this program that would have the same initials as Disney's Mickey Mouse Club, but I love that.