I find that wearing an expensive costume around a bunch of kids hopped up on cake and icecream to be a bad combination. I feel the same way about anywhere that alcohol is served. Same fears, different age group.
Unless it was a special needs kid who was a huge fan of Star Wars, I try to skip those events if/when they come up.
But like Brian said... it depends on the region.
Yep! How else would you learn where to buy and how to put together a stormtrooper costume
-Eric