[49] TK-96004 (DoggyDoc) troop log (Socials approved)

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 13

Toronto Comicon, Toronto, Ontario

Day 1 March 17, 2023

 

This was my first big Con and it did not disappoint.  Helped with setup on the Thursday before the Con,  we were featuring our Mandalorian street inspired Droid Scrap Yard.  We featured photos on the speeder bike, which was repainted during our setup on Thursday, Blast a trooper and an Auction to raise money for Make-a-Wish Foundation.  
 

Day 1 was spent mainly trooping the booth and a 1 hour period of being the target for blast a trooper with a second 3- minute blast a trooper shift to cover someone who did not make it.  Very tiring being the target, but so much fun that I would not give it up for the world. 

 

 

Set up photos. 

 

 

 

Trooping photos

 

Could not resist a photo with the droids on the speeder bike when we had a free second. 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 14

Toronto Comicon, Toronto, Ontario

Day 2 March 18,  2023

 

Returned with sore feet from the day before but once you kit up, the pain is gone.  
Another fun day of trooping.  Had the good fortune of being at the speeder bike -owing for photos when Emily Swallow - “The Armorer” from The Mandalorian stopped by for a visit and took some photos with us.  I am the storm trooper on the left.  
 

 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 15

Toronto Comicon, Toronto, Ontario

Day 3 March 19,  2023

 

Another awesome day.  We had a group photo with Emily Swallow today.  I am out of costume but am in the lower left front of the photo looking back over my shoulder. The final day seemed to be the busiest day at times with a constant line up for photos and blast a trooper all day.  All in all, we were probably somewhere over $3000 raised for Make a Wish Foundation.  
 

 

 

 

[Nairy[Staff]]

19 hours ago, Doggydoc said:

 

Troop 15

Toronto Comicon, Toronto, Ontario

Day 3 March 19,  2023

 

Another awesome day.  We had a group photo with Emily Swallow today.  I am out of costume but am in the lower left front of the photo looking back over my shoulder. The final day seemed to be the busiest day at times with a constant line up for photos and blast a trooper all day.  All in all, we were probably somewhere over $3000 raised for Make a Wish Foundation.  
 

 

 

 

Wow congrats on the 15th! That environment looks amazing!

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 16

Oshawa  Comicon, Oshawa , Ontario

April 22,  2023

 

A small Comicon to raise money in support of the Oshawa Community Centre. 
We started outside and grabbed a photo in front of the tank outside of the Armory. Greeted people passing on the street and sidewalk.  Rainy weather forced us inside after a bit where we mingled and interacted with guests. 
The other TK whom I have trooped with several times, always has a dog squeegee in his glove that he squeeks when the kids high five or fist bump him.  He brought a bag full this troop and passed them out to everyone else. It really makes the shy kids come out of their shell when they fist bump you and they get the big squeak.

 

 

 

 

Last but not least, I achieved a perfect level 4 sit in a fairly low chair. This should solidify my level 4 achievement now. 
 

 

 

Edited April 23, 2023 by Doggydoc

[Morgi[Staff]]

Congrats on L4 -- that definitely counts! 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 17

New Dundee Community Fireworks Event

May 21,  2023

 

This was a fun troop. Outdoors on a beautiful evening. We trooped for 4 hours before the Victoria Day fireworks display. we generally interacted with guests and took photos while they waited for the fireworks.  

I played some Frisbee and actually managed to skip rope (sorry no photos were caught of this. 
 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 18

Gillie Bean’s Fun Day,

Whitby Ontario

May 27,  2023

 

This was the 10th annual Gillie bean Fun Day. It is a memorial troop for a little girl named Gillian who lost her battle, in 2010 at the age of 8, with a rare cancer that affects children called Rhabdomyosarcoma.  This event raises money for Sick Kids Hospital to fund research to combat this horrible disease.  We were there to interact with guests and helped draw participants to their cake walk fundraiser.  It was a fun troop with tons of interaction, clowning around and even dancing at times. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 19

Mississauga Star Wars Collectors Expo

Mississauga, Ontario

May 28,  2023

 

This was a dangerous troop for the pocketbook with a tone of vendors selling all Star Wars collectables from original 1977 merchandise up to new current items. It was a pure star wars crowd and mainly adults who were all very happy to see us and take photos. 
 

In attendance were Roger Christian - Artistic director on the original trilogy who created the light saver, E-11 blaster and R2D2. It was so awesome to see him and just grasp the concept of what he created for all of us.  Also there was Shawn Crawford who played Yakface on Jaba’s barge in Return of the Jedi.  
 

 

 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 20

Mackids Walk and Wheel

Hamilton, Ontario

June 3, 2023

 

This was a fundraising troop for McMaster Children’s Hospital. Lots of fun interacting with people, playing games, taking photos and cheering on the walkers, runners and riders. 

Group shot at the start / finish line. 

 

 

The boss watched intently as I played a game of connect for with one of his mechanics.
 

Victory. 

 

 

Had a go at some calisthenics.  Need to keep in shape to run up and down all those deathstar hallways. 

 

 

Stopped for a bit and mingled with some of the local law enforcement.  
 

 

 

A great turn out and big boost for the hospital. This is why we do it.  
 

 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 21

JDRF Walk for the Cure

Waterloo , Ontario

June 4, 2023

 

This was a troop that hit close to home in more ways than one. It was in my city, and my daughter has Type 1 diabetes.  It felt good to get out there and support a cause close to my heart. 
 

We cheered on the walkers and mingled with them before and after the walk. Great outdoor troop that was not too hot and there was a breeze to help keep us cool.  This was my first troop changing at the car as they had no change rooms for us. Interesting to say the least. Had a passer by help me with my shoulder bridge elastics. He was more than happy to help. After the troop I had a couple of people ask to take pictures, so I put my helmet and gloves back on and obliged. 
 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 10, 2023 by Doggydoc

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 22

Niagara Falls Comicon Day 1

Niagara Falls  , Ontario

June 9, 2023

 

Time for another big Con,  Got up at 5:30 am and drove to Niagara Falls to be there for 9 am to help unload and set up our display area. 
Lots of fun stuff for people to see at this one, we have Jabba’s throne room, droid salvage area with speeder bike and blast a trooper (signed up for all 3 days).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 23

Niagara Falls Comicon Day 2

Niagara Falls  , Ontario

June 10, 2023

 

This Con got better and better every day.  Day 2 highlights included taking part in a “Meet the 501st” panel.  This was my first panel and our CO asked me if I wanted to attend in costume to answer any questions about the costume making process.  This was such a great and interactive experience.

Most of the day was spent doing Blast a Trooper and interacting with guests for photos, fist bumps and high fives.  

Walked the convention floor later in the day and got yo meet one of my heroes, Wendel Clark (former captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs).
 

 

 

Finally, this is the end result of taking on 5 kids with Neef blasters at the same time. 

 

 

Edited June 12, 2023 by Doggydoc

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 24

Niagara Falls Comicon Day 3

Niagara Falls  , Ontario

June 11, 2023

 

This was the most amazing Comicon Day I ever had.  Not as busy as day 2 but so many amazing experiences.

While acting as a target for blast a trooper in the morning, our CO asked if I would be willing to be one of the escorts for Giancarlo Esposito after my shift was done.  Well - that was a no brainer.  
 

We were taken to his room where he was giving his panel and entered as he finished.  As we came in, he introduced us as the 501st and went on to tell the audience about the charity work we do.  He concluded with “These people are my heroes”.  He then came down and took some photos with the group and then shook all of our hands individually. When he came to me, he taped me on the chest piece and said “this here is the real deal’. We then escorted him from the room back through the show floor to his autograph table.  He carried our Din Djarin’s dark sabre and called out long live the empire as we walked.  
 

I am over his right shoulder

Escorting him out of the panel room.

 

preparing for the escort through the convention floor. I am right behind him.

After this, we returned to our booth where we were informed that Trish Stratus (WWE wrestler) saw this and wanted 10 of us to do an escort so she could record it and show her instagram biewers how she gets an escort.  She also was very gracious and posed for a photo, shook all of our hands and donated an autographed photo for our next Comicon coming up in August.  

 

 

After this, we had planned a TK walk through the convention floor earlier in the day.  We suited up with 5 of us and walked the floor.  We visited a couple of comic book artists that had mentioned that they were fans of the 501st earlier in the day and made quite the stir as we marched through.  
 

 

At one point Billy Zane (Titanic) stopped us and asked to get a photo.

 

Later on, a few of us went by the celebrity autograph area, I spotted Jerry Mathers (Leave it to Beaver) who I loved to watch daily as a child on TV. There was no one in line, so I approached to tell him how grateful I was for all of the happiness he brought me as a child.  He gave me his biggest Beaver Cleaver smile and came out from behind his table to shake all of our hands and get a photo with us.  

 

All in all, this was an amazing day all I. Support of Ronald McDonald house.

 

 

 

 

Tons of fun but a very long and tiring weekend. 

 

TK-96004 signing off

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 25

Make a Wish Foundation 40th Anniversary Party

Toronto  , Ontario

July 18, 2023

 

We were invited to attend the Make a Wish 40th Anniversary Party.  This event was the kick off for 160 people (kids and their families) who were in attendance and then the next morning were flying out on a chartered plane to Disney World for their wishes.  It was truly an honour to be invited and participate in this event to give smiles and support to so many brave kids and their families.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nairy[Staff]]

Congrats on the big 25 Gerald!  I'll get there soon but your tempo is hard to keep up with 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 26

Bricks in the Six Lego Builders convention

Mississauga, Ontario

July 23, 2023

 

We were asked to come out to interact with guests and take photos for a local Lego builder gathering. 
 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 27

May The North Be With You. Second Annual Star Wars Collectir Convention - Day 1 

Oakville, Ontario

Aug 5, 2023

 

This was the first of a 2 day convention.  Today was mainly for collectors of Star Wars toys, with guest speakers giving panel discussions through the day.  We were there to interact and take photos with the guests.  It was a fairly small and intimate venue with about 40 people attending and we were invited to sit in and listen to the panel discussions.

 

Panels were given by the creative team that did the animation for the Star Wars Christmas Special, Droids and Ewoks.  I got to eat lunch with John Celestri, who designed and animated Boba Fett for the Christmas Special.

In addition, we were entertained by a discussion by the design and production team for Irwin Toys (Canadian branch of Kenner Toys) who created the original 12 action figures, as well as the x wing, tie fighter and millennium falcon toys.

Finally the highlight was an hour and a half talk with Roger Christian, production designer for ANH and Alien as well as Second Unit director for ROTJ and the phantom menace.  
 

I was able to get Roger to autograph the inner part of the magazine on my E-11 as it was him that actually created the original blaster for the movie.

 

 

 

 

 

 

… and they had Cookies

 

Picked up a fun sticker for my bin

 

 

Then sat and listened to the panels. 
 

 

 

 

Edited August 6, 2023 by Doggydoc

[BAZINGA[TK]]

I have really enjoyed the smaller troops (which compared to a lot of people here is most of mine) and this one seems especially cool!  I need to work on sitting I think...

 

Bart

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 28

May The North Be With You. Second Annual Star Wars Collector Convention - Day 2

Oakville, Ontario

Aug 6, 2023

 

The second day of this convention was a toy sale for the general public.  It was a bit busier but still a fun and fairly laid back troop.  We were stationed with the panel guests and would often chat and fool around during down times.

 

My parents came by as they have never been to a troop or a con for that matter.  They loved seeing what we do.

This was one I found from yesterday that I thought looked cool.

 

Some shots throughout the day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some fooling around with Larry Jacob who worked on animation for the Ewoks cartoon.

 

 

A shot with my mom and dad. 
 

 

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Doggydoc

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 29

Fan Expo Canadian Citizenship Ceremony

Toronto, Ontario

Aug 24, 2023

 

This was a pre Fan Expo troop in which 91 people were awarded their Canadian citizenship.  They posted 2 stormtroopers to stand as honour guard at the door.  After the ceremony, we all posed for photos and mingled with the crowd.  New citizens were given a pass to attend the Con later that afternoon.  Lots of fun and great to see people so excited to get their citizenship.

 

Suited up and ready to trek across the convention centre. 

 

Making the trek through the convention centre, navigating elevators and escalators and posing for the obligatory elevator selfie.

 

 

 

Next we stood as honour guard and greeted guests coming into the ceremony 

 

 

Grabbed a quick phot with an RCMP Mountie. 

 

Post ceremony group shots

 

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 30

Fan Expo Canada - Day 1

Toronto, Ontario

Aug 24, 2023

 

We had a huge set this year for Fan Expo with a Hoth set, Jabba’s throne room, our droid scrap yard with speeder bike and the Tantive 4 corridor. Also blast a trooper was back in full force. 
 

I over did it a bit today with 2 troops back to back spending 5 hours in costume, then took a 90 minute break, then kitted up for another 3 hours. I learned my lesson when my feet rebelled that evening and eased up over the next 3 days. 
 

Photos of our sets

 

 

 

Oh and did I mention, we had a full sized Tauntaun?

 

Had to take this shots in costume. 

 

My son and daughter-in-law visited the booth for a photo op as well.

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 31

Fan Expo Canada - Day 2

Toronto, Ontario

Aug 25, 2023

 

Took it a bit easier today trooping the morning and then spending the afternoon with family before doing a short costumed period in the evening.

Got to show off my shiny white armour to my brother.  We saw ANH together in the summer of 78 at a theatre in California.  He cried because he wanted to see “Benji Come Home”.  We still do not let him live that one down to this day.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Doggydoc

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 32

Fan Expo Canada - Day 3

Toronto, Ontario

Aug 26, 2023

 

We did our Garrison photo before the con opened.  We had a pretty good turn out with about 70 members in costume.  It was fun to have several TK’s kitted up, so we took advantage of the Tantive 4 set before the show opened.

 

 

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Troop 33

Fan Expo Canada - Day 4

Toronto, Ontario

Aug 27, 2023

 

The final day was pretty much the same format as the previous 2.  Did a 2 hour shift on Blast-a-Trooper and hung around the set for photo ops with guests.  In the morning before the show opened, I stopped by the Disney+ booth that had props from Ashoka on display as well as a cool 360 degree camera video to try. Got some cool screen captures from it.