TOWN:Accolades go to city's fairy godmother

Mary Alice O'Connor was called the Fairy Godmother of Burbank Saturday morning during the grand opening festivities for the new family center that bears her name.

Mayor Todd Campbell touted the many organizations that have benefited from O'Connor's participation since she moved to town in 1944, especially the Family Service Agency, of which she has been a member for more than 50 years.

"You have waved your magic wand and have made an eternal impact on our community," Campbell said.

The Fairy Godmother reference was appropriate because her late husband, Kendall O'Connor, was a member of the animation team at the Walt Disney Studio starting in 1935 and worked on more than 100 short and 15 feature films.

Kendall O'Connor created the early drawings of Cinderella's Fairy Godmother in the likeness of his wife, envisioning how she would look when she became older, said J.P. O'Connor, the couple's daughter.

Following a short ceremony, guests toured the center, which provides child care for up to 88 children from infancy to preschool. The building was formerly the Buena Vista Library. Many guests remarked at how cheerfully the rooms are decorated and how much natural sunlight shines in through the windows. The infant room features a diaper-changing table and several cribs and toys.

Rooms for older children have books and games and there are toy collections on display, like dinosaurs and puppets.

The walls are adorned with Disney drawings, many by Kendall O'Connor, all secured after many hours of research by Vivian Procopio, research administrator for the Animation Research Library at Walt Disney Feature Animation, and her staff.

Among those attending were T.J. Baptie, vice president, corporate relations, for the Walt Disney Co. Baptie credits Mary Alice O'Connor for taking her under her wing when she started at Disney and introducing her to the important people in the city.

Joining O'Connor at the event were members of her family, including daughter and son-in-law J.P. O'Connor and Cotton Thompson of Burbank; son and daughter-in-law John and Tamara O'Connor, and their children, Paige and Kendall, of Glendale; and cousins Paul and Merle Kreibich.

Friends wishing her well were Emmy-award winning animator Mark Kirkland and his wife Letti; DeAnne and Byron Hayes; Doris Liljegren and her daughter, Janet Puchlik. Others included Roberta Smith, Alyce Teaney, Helen von Seggern, Bill and Sue Jensen, Mike Chapman, Ken Nielsen, Janet Killian; former city manager Bud Ovrom.