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*Southern California Garrison Photo Shoot - Brea Olinda High School, Brea, CA - 9/30/23 Our Garrison got together again for a group photo this past weekend - for the first time in 6 years! While we number at 421 (ha!) active members currently, we've been as large as 500 and had something like 92 members make it out on a rainy Saturday morning to make this photo happen. Big thanks to our GCO, Ramey @ramey, GXO Nic, Rob S., and Jason C., for facilitating the event and to Brea Olinda High School for once again allowing us to use their facility. Huge thanks to KC @KC Grim, who helped arrange the photo and videographers, Graham Futerfas, Mike Gratzmiller, and John Pingry. There's a pretty awesome video out there, including our march out and some drone footage but unsure how to share it here. We were also able to have the event create some good in the world as well, as we welcomed a student at the high school, A.J., who is a huge Star Wars fan, but also unfortunately battling cancer. We presented him with his own helmet and he got to take several photos with him front and center with all of us. He was stoked and it was a great day. I shared on the Detachment Facebook as well, but one of the best photos of the day was taken (and edited delightfully) by Bender @TK6682 of the stormtroopers of the SCG that made it out that day. Ray C. @RCMUSTANG had the idea for the photo after recently crafting the gladius he's holding. I don't think he's made the HoF yet, but hopefully we can nominate others!

Haha yeah they did. The Vader is actually my dad. I did! I’m actually very careful about all the parts (well as careful as a troop allows!) Thanks everyone! I really love the build and it is more comfortable than my sandtrooper with its backpack. I’m actually very pleasantly surprised by it.

9/30/23 - AFSP Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention Walk 79th TK troop, 34 for the year CREB 5435 - 23rd troop and 8th for the year TK9 Mabel - 4th troop and 3rd for the year This one was a bit more somber of a troop - a walk for suicide prevention. A couple thousand people showed up in memory and support. Mabel, Sabine, and this TK were not gonna miss it. We even made the local news. @elwessbrandon (in the pauldron - he gets some slack for having a shoulder in need of mending) even got a nice interview with them! He did amazing. Sabine and I... And Mabel. Shot by one of my 501st brothers whilst the TV camera was apparently pointed at us. She may be a rebel, but I still love her with all my plastic heart. Mabel doing her stuff with some kids. She is an amazing therapy dog and got many many pats that day. I think she brought as many smiles as the rest of us did. She got lots of belly rub payments. To anyone reading my log who may be struggling or going through some hard times - hit my DM or the FISD Discord. I'm happy to chat and would dearly love to spend some hours doing that than read about your passing sometime later. Life is not easy and the world is bullsh**. But every day we wake up again is another day they haven't beaten us. Don't let them beat you. We're strong together.

Troop 8 and 9 : Regina Entertainment Expo, September 23 and 24, 2023 - supporting Joe's Place Youth Centre I've reordered the numbers to be in line with others in the garrison and others on FISD. This two day event is just over two hours away for me so not bad to get to. Joe's Place had 90% of the display set up with their own props and backdrops that the kids at the centre made or purchased. We just had to put up a few banners and arrange the photobooth area just a bit. It was a tight space and we shared the change room (which was about 8x30 feet) with some of the superheroes from Joe's Place so at times it did bet a bit tight. I was in the armor quite a bit. The first day was rough. Lots of people in the booth so not a lot of time to just step out and move around a bit or stretch. I was ready to be done after 2 hours of standing, but then when I did finish my shift I went and wondered around the con in the armor so I guess it wasn't that bad. Lot's of people wanting selfies and a few wanting "just the stormtroopers" in the photobooth so we were always happy to kick out the other characters for that! I'm 99% sure people only asked that for the stormtroopers not the other costumes! Day two was not as busy so the two hour shift in the booth wasn't bad at all with time to move around and stretch every few minutes. I started the second day in the armor early as I "marched" Princess Leia around the convention floor. Most of us liked a Mustang that someone had decaled up a bit in a Star Wars theme so we made regular tours over to it. I finished with the armor after we did a march with all available SW characters from our area. That was my first and it was quite fun with lots of opportunities to tell onlookers, "Move along" and "Stand aside." First pic from the booth. Tons of costumes went through there. A newly approved Jedi to the right of me. This was his first time in the booth. He was wiping his brow of aweat by the halfway mark and commenting it was getting warm. Ah, yeah. We forgot to turn on the fan to the other side to cool us off. Most TKs in one place that I currently have attended. We have more coming up, but they aren't ready just yet. We could have had a fourth but he opted for doing his Snowy instead this weekend. I finally found them! And nice to have this guy on ice too! I liked me the Mustang, No love for the stick figure family! It was indeed a sad day that day: What can I say? She was speeding. I'm betting she tore it up later and won't appear. The Mustang owner was pumped every time we stopped for a visit. I talked to him before I left at the end of the con and told him I wasn't sure why he hadn't joined the 501st yet with all that love he had for us. He said he really would like to be a TIE pilot. WTF?? Well gave him our contact information anyway. Just join up! Some fun with the Joe's Place Superheroes. I thought I had it tough getting into my armor but after watching the guy get into Groot I think I've got it good. Joe's Place supplied the booth and just about everything else. They also have a TIE fighter at 88% scale but no room this time for it. Kids can go up in the turret and operate it to turn it and shoot targets a few feet away. They loved that. We found out at the end of day one the kids could also look right down in the change area when they were up there so we really have no idea what else they saw those two days but noted for the future that the turret has to be relocated! Finished off my day in a march. I wish we could have music! A fan put up this video though and added some: And I found myself on YouTube ever so briefly at the 9:50 mark. I could have some fun with this guy because he's from the same city as me. He didn't know he had contacted a friend of mine so I was able to use some of those details when reminding him we're monitoring everything! Any troop now until late spring are always tentative as we'll be into weather soon that may make for lots of bad travel. I'm hoping for number 10 to finish off a great first year will happen in late October. Bart

Great pictures!! Loved the text on the car, saying "rebel scum" hahahah

Incredible photots!!!

TK11686 on behalf of SheevsEmporium https://www.facebook.com/sheevsemporium Soft goods have been made for Michael Glover and posted to IG and FB page above for review. General Holster is also patterned and available (photo coming after being sprayed in white) Belts 3 inch and sewn ribbing, are also made available. It is understood there is no finalized CRL so these are available for those wishing to proceed with undersuit as offered TK11686

Congrats on 25!!! I didn't see them till now, but those shots from Theodor... WOW! Perfectly in universe. I'm incredibly jealous.

I haven't posted in about 10 days. But I have been working on it. Today I completed painting, the strapping and had to move some snaps that I am now waiting on the glue. I need to get some elastic for the hand guards tomorrow. And as long as it all looks ok, and I will post pics. Then I am done with the body. I am redoing part of the helmet as I realize that I made it too small for the electronics. That should be completed by the end of the weekend and then done! Until you all tell me where I messed up. Either way, I am excited to get more boxes check. I got my blaster in and I will need to build that. But I am sure it won't be as long as the trooper costume.

Troop 31 Neptune Festival Parade, Virginia Beach What a great turn out. we had Merch, RL and 501st. 3 mile parade, and then unfortunately a 3 mile walk back.

78. OC Sea Country Festival - Laguna Niguel, CA - Sat. 8/26/23 (ANH-S #51, FTE #60)

*TX-41691 Space Marine Re-Enlistment Ceremony - San Clemente, CA - Tues. 8/15/23 Not an official event, but figured I'd share some fun pics if you missed them on Facebook. FISD members of the Southern California Garrison and Imperial Sands Garrison showed up in force to support a friend and confuse some surfers. Our club brother Lucas is the kind of awesome, outgoing guy that you know would show up in plastic spaceman armor to support you in a heartbeat if you asked and he deserved a proper sendoff to go become a Space Marine for the glory of the Emperor. Wishing him the absolute best on his branch transfer from the Marines and re-enlistment into Space Force, and upcoming training in Colorado. Photos by Karen S. (1st) and Zachary D. (remaining) Some fun facts by the numbers! In these photos there are: - 11 ANH-S Stormtroopers & 1 Inferno Squad Cdr. Iden Versio (Lucas' girlfriend) - 2 additional Marines in armor - 4 EIB & 3 Centurions - 2 GMLs & 2 FISD Attaches - 5 different armor makers (ATA, RS, Anovos, MTK, AP) - 3 troopers who appeared in The Mandalorian - 5 troopers who appeared in Obi Wan Kenobi - 2 out of 6 total FISD Armorers - 1 trooper who it was her first time wearing her armor out, all the way up to a GML who has been trooping for almost a decade - troopers who live less than 20 minutes away, to troopers who drove at least an hour to arrive by 7am Pretty cool turnout to support our buddy during his ceremony!

Troop 7 part 2. The day after the Market Square troop we went out to a local area called The Great Sandhills which feature a number of sand dunes in the middle of the prairie. It's a rather interesting nature spot and it can make from some very good photos. We were there early enough to have wind swept sand with no other footprints. I didn't want to take my still new armor out into the sand so while I did pose for one silly shot I just helped get the others in and out of the area. I felt maybe you all would like to see some of the finished shots. Bart If there was any doubt that Tatooine is really in Canada you just have to look at what I'm drinking. Bart