Family Of Late Boy Scout Honors Him With Virtual Disney Cruise

WADING RIVER, NY — The family of a Wading River Boy Scout who died after a drunk driver plowed into his troop in 2018 has lived through long months of anguish, mourning his loss and recently marking what would have been his 14th birthday with a graveside gathering where those who loved him joined together online to remember his life.

But now, his family chose to embrace the joy of his memory and spent a week at home infused with creativity and love — and yes, a healthy dose of Disney magic — as they embarked upon a "virtual cruise" their boy would have undoubtedly adored.

Andrew McMorris, of Wading River, died when a drunk driver plowed into his Boy Scout Troop 161 while they were out hiking the Greenbelt Trail in Manorville. Several other scouts were severely injured as a result of the crash. In December, a jury found the driver who hit Andrew, Thomas Murphy, 60, guilty on all counts.

Their boy, his parents Alisa and John said, loved Disney. He adored aviation and he loved every bit of planning a family vacation.

And so, with Disney World shuttered due to coronavirus, Alisa and John and Andrew's sister Arianna set out to create a virtual Disney cruise that captured the best of all their collective family memories — while at the same time, making new ones at a dark time when joy often seemed eternally elusive.

"On March 27, our court case was supposed to conclude with the sentencing of the defendant," Alisa said. "We wanted to plan something to help us take a huge step forward and some beautiful people offered to take us on a Disney cruise to mark the next step of our journey without Andrew."

But then came the coronavirus crisis.

"The chaos of the world had different plans and everything was on pause," Alisa said. "We had to postpone the 'Run to the Lodge,'" an event organized to raise funds for the McMorris Lodge at the Baiting Hollow Scout Camp; the event has been rescheduled. "Everything was on hold," she said.

And, she added, with the world suddenly still, the silence echoed even more loudly.

"When we are home, Andrew's loss is always felt more acutely, so staying home these weeks has been difficult. We decided long ago to not let anything be taken from us — and 'The Virtual Cruise' was born," she said. "Why not figure a way to be creative and enjoy our time together also knowing that Andrew would have been the first to say, 'Let's make the best of this and be silly.'"

And the sheer ingenuity of the family's endeavor is a testament to not just their creativity, but to the legacy their adventure-loving Andrew left in all their lives and hearts.

"The world outside is scary, so when we feel the fear and uncertainty of the world creep in and stay a little too long, we bring Andrew and Arianna's 'happy place' to the living room to take a break and just smile together. We feel Andrew's energy all around us and always set a spot for him at our table," his mother said.

Together, the family created a cruise that mirrored the actual experience, complete with towel animals in their "cabin," showings of Disney sing alongs, movies and shows, and themed nights, just like they'd experienced on their actual past cruises.

Their virtual cruise featured a Pirate Night, trips to Tortola — they included a great deal of information on each location for their friends and family who were following their cruise on Facebook; those families often dressed up in costume themselves and cooked up Disney-themed dinners, too.

The McMorris family dined on delicious real-life fare as Alisa cooked up themed meals inspired by their Disney experiences, including castaway shrimp and Jack Sparrow chocolate swirl cheesecake with captain's fruit cup; she even offered to share recipes.

Every virtual cruise night ended with a movie at the "basement Buena Vista Theater," with films including "Frozen," "Onward," and other Disney favorites.

Day #5 of the cruise included at virtual stop in St. Thomas and a "Royal Character Dinner" with Prince Charming, Cinderella, and her Fairy Godmother — and with Alisa, John and Arianna dressing up for the fun.

The cruise even included a character brunch with Mary Poppins, who served the famous Mickey waffles.

And what would a cruise be without a formal night? The evenings's entertainment included a midnight showing of "Hercules," and the family dressed in their finest for the festivities.

The final show on the Disney cruise, Alisa said, was “Disney’s Wishes," a 45-minute musical journey about three best friends who are graduating high school "and discover the secret to being a successful adult is staying connected to their inner child."

One of the friends is the valedictorian and gives a speech that seemed "so fitting for us, for Arianna and for this time we are going through," with her daughter's graduation plans, like those of so many others, uncertain under the cloud of coronavirus.

The attention to detail the McMorris family captured on their virtual cruise had friends on Facebook marveling at the care and imagination poured into the project.

But with every photo, every video and sing along, every Disney-inspired meal and beautifully set dinner table worthy of a photo shoot, was the memory of Andrew.

On Easter, Alisa posted a message on Facebook to family and friends. "We love you all. Below is a picture from April 2018. Andrew’s last trip to Disney and his last Easter. God bless one and all. We wish you peace, love, strength and healing."

Her boy was with his family for every magical moment, Alisa said: "We set the table for four every night."

The journey was healing, Alisa said. "We always try to keep light in our home. Each day as we do our jobs and I leave to go to work, I want to come home and find the simple joys of a magical dinner and the love of our family together — something we no longer take for granted. And we pray that others can feel that love, as well."