Have you ever met someone so wonderful you constantly search for their qualities in every person you meet? Or maybe you think to yourself, “If every person was like _______, I would never feel angry.”

Autumn Welt is the definition of that type of person. Today also happens to be her 30th birthday.

After we both decided to chop off our hair!

I met Autumn in 2012, my first year working at Halloween Horror Nights in Orlando, FL at Universal Studios. I was beyond nervous to start working there- I had really no idea what to expect. But to my surprise I ended up in this amazing cast in a house called, “House of Horrors”. I played the Bride of Frankenstein, and Autumn was one of Dracula’s brides.

This is Autumn as Dracula’s bride!

We were 2 out of 3 girls in the house, in a cast of almost 20.

Cast A for House of Horrors

Once HHN finished up at Universal, Autumn ended up joining me at the Gaylord Palms and became part of the Dreamworks team- so I got to continue working with her! It was amazing how many shifts we got to have together.

My favorite part about working together is that we usually had the same ideas in mind for our breaks: it was spent either taking 20 minute naps between sets, catching up, or watching movies on our laptop/kindle.

She even came with me when I got my first (and only) tattoo- she held my hand the entire time. Not to mention that earlier that day she also helped me make a video for a college application. She literally spent an entire day helping me!

Getting my infamous Harry Potter tattoo as Autumn holds my hand!

We also realized that we had to work on Thanksgiving that year- which actually wasn’t so bad. But we decided to go out to dinner after and try to make the most out of not being able to be with family. Instead, we got to be with each other and it was comforting to know that.

The reason I love Autumn so much is that she is the kind of person who really cares, and you always know her true feelings- you don’t ever feel as though she’s putting on a face for you. She’s got the biggest heart, and she’s so passionate.

2012 ended up being pretty rough at the end. Autumn was the only person I trusted to go to about what I was going through, and she was there for every moment of it. She always knew exactly what to say. I remember one day we sat on my bed and watched The Holiday and day dreamed about the future where we both get to find love and happiness. It was a strange night because I remember feeling so sad as it ended but also so hopeful that we were going to accomplish our goal of finding what makes us happy, whether it be love or self-discovery (or both).

I’m extremely lucky to have someone like Autumn as a friend.

She’s currently sailing the seas, working on a cruise ship! Which is also a little of a bummer because it makes it much harder for me to see her when I visit Orlando next week. However, I’m so happy for her and everything she has accomplished.

Happy 30th birthday to the best lady I know. Thank you for being such a wonderful friend.