The team of animators was in the middle of producing “Dave the Barbarian,” a new animated series slated to air on the Disney Channel, when the call came in. But this was no ordinary call – it was a call for help on behalf of a girl in need.

In many ways, Amy is like any normal teenager – fun, outgoing, happy, high-energy. Unlike most 15-year-olds dealing with the typical challenges of school or relationships, though, Amy faces the daily challenge of living with a life-threatening medical condition. Her wish was to be animated character in a Disney cartoon, and with the help of the Make-A-Wish Foundation^® of Suffolk County, Inc., DisneyHand, and Disney’s Television Animation team, her wish would come true.

The small team of television animators got together right away to brainstorm and come up with their game plan. Their goal was not just to make this happen, but also to help a young animation fan understand the true nature of their craft.

Amy’s wish day began early with a full tour of the Disney studios, Disney archives and the Television Animation department. “Amy was really impressed by everything,” remembers Jose Zelaya, animator and character designer for “Dave the Barbarian.” “She was so happy and upbeat with a true passion for animation. It made me appreciate and remember why I do animation.” Amy then got to see the sketches that Jose had drawn of her from a photo she had previously sent. Her character was Moky Varlet, a name created by using the letters from her own name. Amy was then whisked off to do the voice-over of her new character at the recording studio in Los Angeles.

“She was a natural, no stage fright at all. She got into her character pretty quickly and nailed the line right away. She even started ad-libbing a little bit,” says Howy Parkins, director for “Dave the Barbarian.”

After Amy completed her voice-over, she had a chance to meet Tress, a fellow character voice in “Dave the Barbarian.” Amy was then showered with cool animation sketches, posters, her very own personalized “Dave the Barbarian” nameplate, and a wide range of other Disney items to take home and treasure.

“This was her once-in-a-lifetime wish, and we felt we couldn’t do enough,” says Howy. “But after seeing her excitement, we knew we had been successful in our hopes to make it great experience. We just felt so honored that above anything she could have wished for, like a vacation to Disney World, she chose animation – and television animation, at that.”

Amy’s day ended with big smiles, and she left eagerly anticipating the day she would receive the complete episode of “Dave the Barbarian” and see herself as one of its animated characters.