The Untold Story of Walt Disney's Birthplace | Dina Benadon
What can the house where Walt Disney was born teach us about creativity, imagination, and the courage to pursue an idea before you know how it will turn out?
Dina Benadon, co-founder of the Walt Disney Birthplace and CEO of Super 78, has built a career around bringing seemingly impossible ideas to life. From developing immersive attractions for theme parks around the world to restoring the modest Chicago home where Walt Disney was born, Dina believes that extraordinary things happen when we stay curious, embrace possibility, and take the first step.
On this episode of BETTER GOOD, Scott M. Curran sits down with his longtime friend Dina to explore the unexpected journey that led her from themed entertainment to historic preservation and nonprofit leadership. What began as a discovery about Walt Disney's early childhood became a mission to save his birthplace and transform it into a place that inspires creativity, imagination, and innovation in future generations.
For Scott, the story is also personal. His curiosity about the Walt Disney Birthplace led him to reach out and offer his support, beginning a friendship with Dina and a shared commitment to helping the organization grow. Together, they explore the experiences that shaped Dina's outlook, from her grandmother's extraordinary acts of compassion during World War II to the creative partnerships and opportunities that have defined her career. They also discuss the importance of nurturing imagination in children, the power of community, and why doing something meaningful rarely requires having everything figured out in advance.
Throughout the conversation, Dina returns to a philosophy inspired by Walt Disney himself: "It's always fun to do the impossible." She and Scott discuss what it means to approach challenges with curiosity instead of hesitation, find the right people to bring an idea to life, and keep moving forward even when the path isn't clear.
This is a conversation about Walt Disney's legacy, imagination, entrepreneurship, historic preservation, childhood creativity, and the good we can create when we stop waiting for the perfect moment and simply get started.