Friday, 21 March 2014

Toronto Comiccon 2014: Stars Wars in TO

by Toni Weri
THE GALACTIC MISSION: Trooping with the 501st/Rebel Legion at Toronto Comiccon 2014

On March 7th-9th, I had the pleasure of Trooping with my fellow members of the 501st and Rebel Legion at Toronto Comiccon, in Toronto, Ontario. It was, as always, an enjoyable event. Legion members from Ottawa, Toronto and the U.S.A attended this geeky event.


Photo taken by Toni Weri

I'll summarize what we, the 501st/Rebel Legion, do. We are a volunteer, international costuming organization that raises funds for various charity organizations. We do this by setting up various booths at events, such as comic conventions or at local fundraising events. What do we costume as? As STAR WARS characters! All costumes are made by Legion members.

The good guys and the bad guys, banding together for the same goal, to make a difference while doing what we love.

Trooping for charity, that’s what we do. All funds raised during Toronto Comiccon 2014 will go towards a children’s charity.

How did we raise funds? Well, that’s one of the fun parts of Trooping. At major events, such as comic conventions, an elaborate and interactive booth is normally put together. At the beginning of the booth, the Canadian Garrison put together an info/recruit desk. Here, Legion members happily answered questions about our group as well as informed convention goers on how they can become a 501st/Rebel Legion member. Normally raffle tickets are available at this part of the booth.



Photo taken by Toni Weri

The next section of the Legion booth was a “Blast-a-Trooper” for charity. Participants shot at Stormtroopers and Clone Troopers with awesome Nerf guns. It was actually quite a blast. Troopers underwent hours of being bombarded by foam blaster bullets, all in the name of charity.


Photo taken by Toni Weri


Moving along down the Legion booth, we reach the photo booth. Here, fans of all ages took pictures with their favourite Star Wars characters, for a small donation of course.



Photo taken by Toni Weri

The 501st/Rebel Legion Canadian Base raised a total of $6170.65 during Toronto Comiccon 2014 for a children’s charity. Awesome job Troopers!


Photo taken by Phil Gotfried at Toronto Comiccon 2014

The Legion is active on five continents, with Garrisons and Outposts in over fifty countries around the globe. Making a difference while being geeky. Sounds about right to me.

For more information about the 501st and Rebel Legion, please visit the links below.


May the Force Be with You!



Toni Weri is a freelance artist. She is a geek of all trades, but her forte lies with anime, costuming, video games and Sci-Fi. 

You can follow her on Twitter or Instagram @ TONIGEEKGIRL








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