When you work for World Wrestling Entertainment, air travel is a necessary, but not always desirable, part of the job. But a one-day charity event in the middle of May likely changed the opinions of Christian and Victoria.

The WWE Superstars were two of the celebrities accompanying nearly 270 disadvantaged children on a whirlwind 21-hour adventure from Toronto to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. But the annual trip, called Dreams Take Flight, is unlike any of the commercial or charter flights the two wrestlers were accustomed to taking.

"I'm running on about 3 hours of sleep" said Christian, the Canadian who calls himself Captain Charisma, "and we started to take off and I just started to doze off a little bit and bam! I got hit in the side of the head with a pillow. I wake up and there's a pillow fight going on in the plane, streamers going down the aisle way and people running all over, singing and playing games.. it was unlike any flight I've ever been on, it was a lot of fun."

When the planes are dubbed Mickey 1 and Mickey 2, having fun is almost mandatory. But the festivities began long before the kids, celebrities and volunteers boarded the two Air Canada 767s. Beginning at 4:15 in the morning, a private hanger at Toronto's Pearson Airport played host to a pre-flight party, complete with music, a circus elephant and a giant inflatable slide. WWE Diva Victoria was overwhelmed.

"I walked in this hangar and.. unbelievable. I mean just the effort everyone put into it.. the environment.. I went on the slide with the kids, all the performances.. it's amazing."

"I expected to show up this morning and just kind of jump on the plane with the kids and head down here," said Christian, who grew up just 45 minutes northwest of Toronto in Orangeville, Ontario. "But you walk in, 6 o'clock in the morning, walk into a big hangar at the airport and there's a big party going on - balloons, streamers, people dancing on the stage, plays going on, the music blaring.. it's a big party from start to finish."

But the party was just a pre-cursor - the curtain-raiser to the main event that is the Magic Kingdom. Charter buses took the participants from the Orlando airport onto the Disney World property, then a ferry ride transported everyone to the front gates of the park. But before she began her day at Disney, Victoria needed to feel the part.

"I'm a big kid," said the California native, who has been to Disneyland on the West Coast but never to the Florida version. "First thing when I came in here, I needed to get a hat. I needed Mickey Mouse ears."

With the children, clad in bright yellow Dreams Take Flight t-shirts, now split into small groups, the wrestlers spent time taking many of the kids on the attractions. Christian counted Splash Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Space Mountain (twice) as his favourite rides. Victoria took a whirl on Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger spin, Tomorrowland Indy Speedway and It's A Small World. But her most memorable experience of the day was an encounter with one of the participants on Splash Mountain.

"He said, 'this is a dream of mine, to be on this ride with my favourite Diva.' And I thought he was just saying it. And he goes, 'no, really, this is great.' I get emotional, I'm very sensitive so it really touched me."

"I don't get to do this very often at all," continued Victoria. "We usually do autograph sessions and it's very rushed. I get to go on rides with these kids and just have a good time. Eat lunch, eat dinner with them, watch the parade.. and it's not too often we get to do this and so it's very rewarding."

"It always makes you feel good to be part of something like this," added Christian. "To see the smiles on the kids' faces, the excitement they have when they get to come and run around and jump on the rides. It's a lot of fun and it brings out the kid in you."

A late afternoon rainstorm did nothing to dampen spirits. The day wrapped up with a spectacular fireworks show set to Disney music. The children then were whisked back to the Orlando airport for the return flights, which touched down in Toronto at 2 in the morning. The 16th edition of Dreams Take Flight was over for another year, but not before plans were being made for future trips.

"I did talk to Chris Benoit about this, he did it last year and he was bummed he didn't do it this time," said Victoria. "I'll be back."

Trish Stratus, Val Venis and Edge are some of the other WWE Superstars who previously took part in Dreams Take Flight. But none, according to Christian, had the impact of Captain Charisma.

"I formed friendships with all the kids," he said with his trademark smirk. "Actually, next year I think they may call it Peeps Take Flight."

Credit: TSN.ca