In George Lucas’s Star Wars universe, the evil Galactic Empire’s iconic Stormtrooper army isn’t exactly known for doing good deeds. But, in a galaxy not so far, far away – New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley, to be exact – the white-armored Troopers are a much more welcome sight.
The Empire City Garrison, founded in 1999, is one of more than 80 chapters of the 501st Legion organizations worldwide. The fan-founded groups began as a means for costumes to showcase their hyperrealistic Stormtrooper replica armor, but soon expanded to include promoting broader interest in Star Wars and volunteerism.
“We’ve raised money on behalf of the Cancer Society, the Autism Society and organizations in the Hudson Valley area. We try to rotate it around,” Chris Feehan, Empire City Garrison commanding officer, said. “If it’s a very small event, we might only have one [trooper]. It only takes one to make a difference and impact whatever that organization is.”
Worldwide, the 501st Legion has left such a profound mark on the Star Wars fandom and their communities, what began as the name of a fictional Stormtrooper unit became incorporated into official Star Wars canon. The fictional 501st Legion is known as “Vader’s Fist” across Star Wars media, but locally they’re known for their heart.
“They’re not selling anything; they include their own costs to be here and take time off of their lives to dress up and do the things,” said Benjamin Kline, Tenacious Toy CEO, who collaborated with the Empire Garrison at New York Comic-Con by giving a customized set of Star Wars stickers. “They’re entertaining while raising money. I think that’s a really good way to be.”
Among the 130 events they participate in a year, New York Comic-Con at Javits Center is one of the most significant. This year, they raised $9,000 in donations, primarily driven by photo opportunities.
Becoming a new member is not a simple or inexpensive task. The cost of the stormtroopers’ costumes ranges from $1,000 to $2,500, and putting them together can take up to a month. Although not all members are able to start building such realistic costumes by themselves, troopers help them assemble their kit, strap it on and get storming.
“We also are all about troopers helping troopers,” Feehan said. “We help people get their bad guy [Star Wars] costume to a level that’s movie-accurate and can be used for good in the community.”
Justin Weiss, 53, ECG executive officer, first learned about the organization in the 2011 Comic-Con edition. Ever since, he has been fletched by the bad guys’ purpose and finally joined in 2021.
“This has been a dream come true. Since I was a young boy, I have always been a Star Wars fan,” he said. “It was a 10-year journey for me. Finally, I managed to get my costume together and join the 501st Legion.”
At this year’s Comic-Con, his 21-year-old daughter, Megan, joined him as a member of the ECG for the first time. As remarkable as that experience has been, Weiss still remembers his first time as a stormtrooper at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in Queens.
As his fellow troopers had been there before and knew the routine, he did not want to bother anybody’s way. He fell back until one of the children’s mom called him, asking him to visit his son.
Once he got permission, he entered the room and kneeled in front of the young boy, who was strapped to wires in a special machine.
“I watched him look over at me and just crack a smile. I told him, ‘You need to get better, you need to grow up, you need to be one of us.’ I walked out, and as I did, the mother came running up behind me and said, ‘That’s the first time my kid smiled in over a month.'” Weiss shared. “You’re actually glad you’re wearing a helmet at those moments because your eyes tear up.”
