Kourageous Keith

“The Rebel Pilot hides in the basement, alone, hoping to avoid detection at all cost…”

No, that’s not the opening line of the latest X-Wing series novel -- just me being the first to arrive at a surprise birthday party request that came in to Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan this past weekend. 

 The birthday party was for a brave kid known as “Kourageous Keith.” Keith just turned 8 years old and he is fighting a rare form of pediatric cancer called “undifferentiated soft tissue sarcom” -- for the second time.  His mother sent in a request for a few Star Wars characters to make an appearance at his birthday party, an invite our guys were glad to accept.  As you’d imagine, we tend to get a lot of birthday party event requests (for various reasons) -- yet we tend to only accept ones involving kids with serious medical issues.

Once the rest of the guys joined me in my underground hideout/basement, everyone got suited up as quietly as possible. After a while, Keith’s mom comes downstairs to check if we’re ready.  She goes back upstairs and announces that there’s some “special guests” who’d like to wish Keith a happy birthday; which is our cue to start heading upstairs.

In case you were wondering how many adult-sized Star Wars characters can fit in your standard-size living room = the answer is four; yet we somehow managed to fit six of us in the room!

After the rush of kids and parents taking cell phone pictures of Keith with all of the Star Wars characters, you can’t come to a kid’s birthday party without bringing some presents!  Bunch of the guys donated various Star Wars coloring books, toys and Hot Wheels cars for Keith’s birthday.  Keith tried on my Rebel Pilot helmet, which went along with his “Rebels Rule” t-shirt, and checked out one of the Mercs’ blaster rifle.  Then it was time for us to load up the spaceship and leave Keith and his family to enjoy the rest of his party.

You can find out more about “Kourageous Keith” by visiting his facebook community page:

https://www.facebook.com/KourageousKeith

GLB five-year Celebration

This year, Great Lakes Base has been celebrating it’s five-year anniversary with The Rebel Legion!  As one of the largest Bases within Rebel Legion, this milestone says a lot about not only the current members, but also the many people who’ve come and gone over that time.  One of the best ways to honor the legacy of Great Lakes Base is by coming together to celebrate the occasion with our fellow band of “Rebels.”  That is precisely what happened this past weekend in Maumee, Ohio.

Jed’s Fireball and Brew has become the (unofficial) center of Great Lakes Base.  The sports bar is located just outside of Toledo, with easy access from either the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton or Detroit regions of either Michigan or Ohio.  As many of us travel these “hyperspace routes” to and from events on a regular basis, finding a centralized location to host a rally for a volunteer group is helpful. This year’s holiday party would be extra special because it also served that the five-year anniversary celebration.

BrianKenobi and Lumpy welcomed everybody to this special occasion with a brief “State of the Base” address; pointing out the fact that Great Lakes Base is the third largest Base in Rebel Legion, that we’re tied for the largest population of Wookiees within RL, and that for the third year in a row GLB has trooped +100 “missions” over the course of the year.  BrianKenobi also introduced Moff D, the original Commanding Officer for Great Lakes Base, who helped keep this group together during some rather difficult times and thank him for helping build the Base we have today.

Then came time for the announcement of this year’s “Skywalker Select Awards.”  The Skywalker Select Award is presented to a GLB member from each state “for outstanding commitment, devotion and contributions to the Great Lakes Base.”  This year’s recipients were Foogy One (Ohio) and kcjohnson (Michigan)

Once the “rebel briefing” was taken care of, it was time to celebrate and HAVE FUN! Sheikahchica hosted her annual “White (Bantha)” gift exchange, which is a huge hit with the crowd.  For reasons I can’t get into (for now), Lumpy and Bacca9 decided to suit up in their respective Wookiee costumes for a while – which made the evening feel a bit like the “Star Wars Holiday Special.”

Here’s to another five years (and more) of Great Lakes Base!  Because when it comes to this Star Wars family having a good time… “it’s what we do!”

Toledo Walleye

If there’s two things in life that I live for it’s Star Wars and ice hockey. Which means that when you bring those two things together, it becomes the “Reese’s Cup” of AWESOME!  And that is exactly what happened when Great Lakes Base and Ohio Garrison returned for “Star Wars Night” with the Toledo Walleye.

After the overwhelming success of last year’s Star Wars promotion, you would think this year has to be BIGGER then the year before – but if there’s anything I learned growing up playing hockey it’s that not every goal is scored on the power play!  We have done several sporting events with this organization, who also own the Toledo Mudhens baseball team (across the street) and one of the things we keep emphasizing to their promotions staff is that our guys work best when we are interacting with the fans.  So that is exactly the mission the Walleye staff gave us!

First off was a pregame character dinner where fans could enjoy some burgers and hot dogs, followed by some special one-on-one time with us.  Many of the kids were dressed up in their favorite Star Wars costumes and each family went around taking pictures with us.  It was fun to get to spend a little extra time with each kid, asking them who their favorite Star Wars character was -- particularly the one kid who pointed to me and said, “You!” (you can bet that kid got a high five for that answer)

Eventually, it was time for the game to start and we setup around the Walleye’s photo booth station.  The photo booth had a “green screen” backdrop (because what is Star Wars without a little green screen effects?) where fans could get their photo taken with any of us and have a special Star Wars background added in.  Each of us took turns in front of the camera, sometime fans would request for a specific character or two. The rest of us took pictures with fans passing by or as they waited in line for the photo booth.

Hockey is a game of speed and trying to troop one goes by even faster!  Plus it was a good night for the home team as the Toledo Walleye defeated the Orlando Solar Bear 4-3, extending their six game winning streak.  I’d like to personally thank the Toledo Walleye staff for not only inviting us… but also for taking care of my parents, who drove up to watch both the game and watch their kids play “Star Wars” -- two things which go great together!

Toledo Children's Hospital

One of the things you will hear many people say about groups like ours is that we get to “play Halloween, all year round.”  While that may be true in some respect, not every kid gets to go out and have fun Trick-Or-Treating with their friends… which made yesterday’s mission extra special when Great Lakes Base and Ohio Garrison were invited back to Promedica Toledo Children’s Hospital, to visit with the kids being treated there.

Hospital visits can be something of a balancing act for groups like ours; there can be a lot of protocol involved that could make C3P0’s circuits fizzle.  Each encounter with a patient is unique and both the hospital staff and Star Wars costumers want to help create as many smiles as possible, while at the same time respecting the patients and their parents needs.  For this visit, we ended up going from room to room visiting with kids individually -- because (thank the Force) the children’s wing of the hospital was fairly inactive this weekend.

In some cases, we were not allowed into the room for medical reason -- so we just stood in the doorway and took turns saying "hello!"  There was one girl in the children's ICU unit, whom I'll never forget because she had the most upbeat attitude.  Other times, both parents and nurses told us that they hadn’t seen their kid as excited as when we dropped in to visit them.  Amazing what holding a Jedi's lightsaber can do to improve a sick child's morale!

And as I explained to the kids, since we Star Wars characters are “kind of new to this planet…” and “didn’t totally understand how this Trick-Or-Treat thing worked?” we showed up came with a bag filled with various Star Wars toys, coloring books and games for them to pick something out. (Did I get that backwards?)  In fact, one kid was so excited to receive a gift from us that he rushed over to his Halloween bucket, pulled out some of his candy and put it into our bag as a gift for us… good trade!

Trooping at a hospital can be a balancing act, but they are also one of the most rewarding types of events costume groups get to do!  My first “official” event with Rebel Legion was at a local hospital visit and I’d like to see us do more of them with various local children’s hospitals.  

Boo at the Zoo Strikes Back!

Last week, I promised to report on anything NEW over at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo during our second weekend of “Boo at the Zoo” with Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan.  Looking back, I may have taken that oath a bit literally.

How about we start with what stayed the same?  “Boo at the Zoo” is the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s is a neighborhood of safe Halloween entertainment for kids, featuring lights, games and other fun activities as families tour the many animal exhibits during the evening hours.  This was the final weekend of “Boo at the Zoo” for 2014 and (just like last week) Saturday night was SOLD OUT!

One thing that was different was the weather -- which was BEAUTIFUL, unlike last weekend.  This meant that more people were coming dressed in their favorite Halloween costumes, minus the winter coats; a tradition for anyone who grew up in NE Ohio. 

Another thing different was that with the exception of Snips and myself, we had an entirely different crew from last weekend; all of them “Boo at the Zoo” rookies.  We started off in our usual spot by the main entrance and people would ask if they could get pictures with us -- as we at GLB like to say, “it’s what we do!”  However, once the zoo was opened up to the public to explore Snips had the idea of mixing things up a bit from our standard routine.  Traditionally, we wait for the crowds to disperse before we go exploring the zoo for ourselves. However, since the weather was so nice and sunset wasn’t for another hour or so, we decided to start our patrol of the zoo while it was still daylight.  In fact, we got all the way up the hill by the Wolf Lodge, tigers and bears (oh my!) exhibits before it got really dark and more people stopped us for photos along the way then we typically get waiting by the main entrance. 

After meeting up with a pair of late arrivals from Rancor Clan, our group made it’s way towards the opposite end of the zoo.  We stopped for a while at the newly restored “Circle of Wildlife Carousel” -- featuring sixty-four, individually carved animal figures, all hand created by an Ohio-based company.  This thing is BEAUTIFUL to look at and was originally part of the old Euclid Beach Park from 1910-1969.  Restoring this carousel has been a labor of love for the Cleveland Metroparks and now a new generation of kids will get to build a lifetime of memories riding this famed attraction.

From there our group took a “walkabout” through the Australian-themed exhibit and Reinberger Homestead, past the “Elephant Crossing” (who smell a lot like Banthas) until we were back at the main entrance and most of our guys were ready to gear down for the evening.

GLB "Mission Photos" -- Cleveland Metroparks "Boo at the Zoo"

It had been a different type of evening for us at “Boo at the Zoo” – but as always, it also was a lot of fun!

Boo at the Zoo

Having been around the galaxy as much as I have, you tend to look for things that stand the test of time.  There is a rich history of trooping at Cleveland Metroparks “Boo at the Zoo” since long before Great Lakes Base even existed.  While some would argue that makes this particular event boring, it doesn’t as Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan return for another FUN tour at this Cleveland area tradition.

“Boo at the Zoo” is a family friendly event, hosted by the Cleveland Metropark Zoo, where they decorate the zoo in lights and other non-scary Halloween entertainment as families get to visit many of the animals and exhibits.  “Boo at the Zoo” features: animal shows, a Not-So Haunted Greenhouse, train rides, a hay maze, along with dozens of stilt walker and other entertainers.  And despite your typical NE Ohio late-October weather (cold and rainy) this event was once again SOLD OUT!

One of the things I like most about trooping “Boo at the Zoo” is that it’s a reminder about what trooping should be all about.  Over the years, I’ve developed friendships with many of the other costumed performers who work EVERY night of the event.  For example, there’s this man who plays a stilt-walking clown called “Pee-Chee” that has been part of this event for as long as I can remember.  As it turned out, he had recently gone through major heart surgery – and yet he’s back out there making kids smile (a little shorter then I remember him) which means he’s got more “heart” then a lot of people.

The other thing I love about trooping during “Boo at the Zoo” is to watch the people coming in get dressed up for Halloween; even when you have to find a costume that goes with your winter coat over it.  As you can imagine, there were A LOT of Elsa and Anna from Disney’s “Frozen”, Superheroes and all the usual favorites.  As an avid Star Wars fan, I was pleased to see many kids dressed up as Star Wars characters: Darth Vaders of all sizes, a few Jedi younglings, Captain Rex and the clones are still popular and even Ezra from the NEW “Star Wars Rebels.”

GLB "Mission Photos" -- Cleveland Metroparks "Boo at the Zoo"

Once our group was free to wander the zoo, we made our way up the hill to the Wolf Lodge; where our favorite pair of costumed Cellists who will play a selection of Star Wars music whenever we spot us walk in!  Later, we got to meet Chad Schofield from the Cleveland Gladiators arena football team.  This is another reason why I love coming back for this event: our guys do a little work… then get to have fun!

We have one more weekend at “Boo at the Zoo” this weekend, so I’ll try reporting on some of the new additions to Cleveland Metroparks in my next report; after I enjoy some funnel cake!

Cincinnati Comic Expo

It was a busy weekend in downtown Cincinnati, between “Octoberfest”, homecoming weekend for University of Cincinnati, the Bengals were at home vs. the Titans on Sunday, as well as Cincinnati Comic Expo.  Members from Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan were all in attendance – along with friends from nearby Kentucky – for Ohio’s largest comic book convention.

Because of changes to Episode VII filming schedule, Peter Mayhew was forced to cancel his appearance.  David Prowse also had to cancel, due to knee surgery.  Yet shortly after that news, it was announced a trio of Boba Fetts: Daniel Logan, Dickey Beers (stunts) and John Morton -- also known for “Dak” from Empire Strikes Back -- would replace Mayhew and Prowse on the Cincy Expo guest list.  This was the first time John Morton has appeared at a convention in Great Lakes Base, so the boys from Shadow Squadron made sure to offer him a proper welcome. (more on that in upcoming posts)

Another big debut this weekend was for the Ohio Garrison “Detention Block” display booth.  Joining last year’s Speeder Bike and full-sized Dewback -- provided by Midsouth Garrison -- was a full-sized Death Star detention block, complete with two working “cells” where people could be held prisoner as part of the “Bounty Hunt” charity fundraiser.  For a small donation, folks were given lanyards to walk around the convention floor – where troopers from Ohio Garrison and bounty hunters from Rancor Clan would “arrest” them, and place them inside the detention block for about 5 minutes; or until someone paid to “bail” them out first.  The proceeds from this weekend’s went to Families with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) -- a local autism support group. 

While we here at Great Lakes Base typically do our best to foil the Empire’s efforts, we did manage to help sign up several people for the charity fundraiser – I even helped a few evade capture from Troopers and Mercs for a little while longer!  Together, we helped raise just over $600 for the organization.  To learn more visit: http://www.familieswithasd.org

Along with the Star Wars actor guests on the lineup, Cincinnati Comic Expo featured a pair of local artists with ties to Star Wars.  One of the headline artists was longtime friend, Ohio native and Rebel Legion Honorary Member – Joe Corroney.  Also setting up shop along “artist alley” was aspiring artist and actual Great Lakes Base member Travis Perkins; who’s done several projects for us over the years.  If you are a fan of Star Wars artwork, I highly recommend you visit both of their respective tables and pickup something for your wall at home.

Detroit Tigers "Star Wars Night"

My first MLB game away from home was at the old Tigers Stadium… vs. the Cleveland Indians!  Some of my greatest memories at Indians home games were always against the Detroit Tigers.  Back in high school, I used to own matching “home” and “away” Tigers baseball hats, direct from the team’s clubhouse -- a gift from my dad’s old Navy buddy, who took us to that game at Tiger Stadium years ago.  So when the Detroit Tigers hosted the Cleveland Indians for this year’s “Star Wars Night” -- you can imagine how much I needed to be there.

In fact, Tigers “Star Wars Night” has become something of an annual tradition for the members of Great Lakes Base and Great Lakes Garrison.  Going back to 2011, the Detroit Tigers have hosted a Star Wars-themed game and has been a crowd favorite ever since.  Organizing an event of this size can be like leading an entire campaign vs. a single battle, and Michigan Captain “kcjohnson” did an amazing job in his first year coordinating this event, on behalf of us Rebels.  In fact, the Tigers game is so special to groups like us -- Snips92 arranged to fly directly to Detroit (from work trip in Boston) just so she wouldn’t miss the opportunity to troop this game!

Now, understand that events like this tend to make for a LONG day for us.  We arrive at Comerica Park around 2:30pm and once everyone is checked in and security looks through our armor bins… then we make our way down to the lower levels, where (much like a relief pitcher) it’s off the bullpen to wait.  Later, once everyone is suited up -- we march outside for a massive group photo, under the giant tiger statue in front of the ballpark.  Unfortunately, we happen to run into a bridal party – who didn’t seem to get the hint that while for the bride this may be “her day”… we’re kinda on a tight schedule.

As time grew closer to the first pitch, we made our way down to the right field tunnel, where the Star Wars characters lead a parade around the warning track during pre-game introductions.  Members of the Michigan Philharmonic played a medley of Star Wars music and a small group of characters took part in the opening pitch ceremony; this year Boba Fett got "the call" from the dugout.

After that, it was time to meet the fans and take pictures… LOTS of pictures!  If you were lucky enough to make it over where the team had special “Star Wars Night” backdrops (great!) -- otherwise, you just paired up with a few other characters and just braced for wave after wave of photo-ops with fans!  The crowd was super excited to see us, and I always seem to get mobbed by the cute girls whenever I troop in Detroit -- think I should relocate here? ;)

Unfortunately (for us Tribe fans) Alex Avila hit a 2-run homer in the 8 th, giving the Tigers a 5-4 win over the Indians.  It still was fun to be back in Detroit, watching my two favorite teams play each other -- but this time I had to represent CLE by wearing my "Chief Wahoo" hat backstage.

FanExpo Canada

It has been a few years since I journeyed to Toronto for FanExpo Canada, this year was extra special as it marked the 20 th anniversary for Canada’s largest comic book convention.  Because our Base is so close to the Canadian border at various locations, several members from Great Lakes Base made the trip up for FanExpo.  Lumpy and Mickay crossed on the Michigan side, whereas Snips and I made the Kessel Run (via Buffalo, NY) in less then 12 parsecs -- which after trying to convert miles to kilometers for 5-6 hours doesn’t seem like much.

One of the first things you see you enter the show floor was the massive booth display by Canadian Base, 501st Canadian Garrison and R2-Builders.  On one side, you have a full sized Death Star hallway -- complete with display Imperial props and costumes.  In the middle, you can lookup information on all three groups on working computers in a mockup of the Death Star hanger control room.  Next to that was the “Shoot-A-Trooper” Tantive IV doorway.  On the opposite side of the door was the Tantive IV hallway, where Garrick Hagon (“Biggs Darklighter” from Star Wars: A New Hope) was appearing and signing autographs, as special guest of all the groups.  Plus, full-sized photo booth -- all raising money for Make-A-Wish Canada.

For me, FanExpo was a chance to reunite with my old friend Jedi XXL from Hawkbat Squadron.  Gil and I go way back, and it’s always a good time when Shadow Squadorn and Hawkbat Squadron get together.  As I said earlier, Garrack Hagon was setup over on the Tantive IV side of the booth -- signing autographs and taking picture with fans over in the Tantive IV.  A few Stormtroopers had also taken up position there for pictures with fans; that is until more of us Rebel Pilots started showing up.  It was kinda funny to watch them slowly retreat to a different area as more and more people wanted pictures with the Rebel Legion!

REBEL PILOTS TOOK BACK THE TANTIVE VI from the Empire!!!

Another highlight of the weekend was the official FanExpo group photo.  The first thing is trying to march a small army of troopers and rebels from the booth (located in the north building) up and down several escalators, across a bridge, and past couple thousand people.  The local guys did an amazing job coordinating with con security to clear us a path through the convention center.  Then, it’s a lot of stand around and wait… and wait, as they line us up and clear the floor as people are trying to exit the con.  Later Garrack Hagon as well as Albin Johnson (founder of 501st) joined us for the group photo.

On Sunday, I had the chance to meet Steve Blum, the voice of “Zeb” in the upcoming Star Wars Rebels.  We talked about the new show and he’s looking forward to meeting more Rebel Legion members at future conventions. Great guy!!!

Thanks to our hosts from Canadian Base and Canadian Garrison, along with R2-Builders for a great weekend of trooping!

Steel City Con Smuggler’s Run

by: dgcook

I first visited the Steel City Con in Monroeville PA in the spring, as both Han Solo and TK-6290 -- and had a wonderful time.  I knew I would go back to the next one as soon as the first day drew to a close.  The convention is currently held 3 times a year.  It has the wonderful feeling of a good size convention that doesn’t feel too big.  And judging from the number of people having fun I think many others were drawn back too.  I recognized many people from the spring visit. 

The convention floor was full each day with enthusiastic people, many in costume and all in a good spirit.  A smile greeted you no matter where you turned.  Everyone seemed to be having fun and enjoying the convention.  The “Blast-A-Trooper” setup was very popular and many a trooper was covered in Nerf darts.  

There are two separate areas in a large convention hall: one mostly filled with vendors and the other with artists; and a great representation of both.  There are lots of great things to look at and too many things I want to take home.  The Ghost Base was stationed in the larger front hall and Garrison Carida with its “Blast-A-Trooper” station was located just as you entered the back section.  While trooping through the isles, I have made some wonderful new friends that I cannot wait to see again.  Both members of Ghost Base and Garrison Carida could not be more welcoming and fun to troop with.

The celebrity autograph section is also located in the back hall.  This year Billy Dee Williams and LeVar Burton (from Star Trek: The Next Generation/Reading Rainbow) were signing and at the December show Peter Mayhew and Michael Dorn will be there.  There were plenty of people to keep Billy Dee and LeVar busy, but not to the point where people had to worry about getting time with them.  I hope to be there again for the next show too and look forward to seeing everyone again.

Bish Bash

It has been almost four years since a boy named Sam Bish passed away from his battle with cancer.  I had only met him once briefly, during a private movie night screening of “Revenge of the Sith” – where Sam was joined by a small army from Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan.  I remember attending Sam’s funeral, along with an honor guard of Star Wars characters.  In the years that followed, Michael and Cindy formed The Sam Bish Foundation in honor of their son’s memory and either hosted or organized events to help raise awareness for pediatric cancer, many times with the Star Wars groups along with them. So when it came time to rally in Columbus for the second annual “Bish Bash” the choice was simple…

“I have a promise to keep, to an old friend.”

“Bish Bash” is a carnival-style fundraiser event that supports The Sam Bish Foundation work raising awareness of pediatric cancer.   The family-friendly event is held at Westerville Christian Church and features everything from games and bounce houses, food trucks and other vendors, a presentation by the Columbus Zoo and local Fire Departments, along with not just Star Wars characters… but a collection of princesses, super-heroes from Heroes Alliance and even the TARDIS and Doctor Who Columbus.

The Bish family has a place in the hearts of many within Great Lakes Base, but probably none more so then “Grumpy” and his family of Kashyyk clonetroopers.  Last year, Grumpy decorated the chest plate of his Commander Bly armor with The Sam Bish Foundation… this year, the entire “squad” had each personalized their chest plates, and Grumpy even custom painted a clonetrooper helmet in Sam Bish colors – as a gift for Michael and Cindy.

For this year’s Bish Bash, we also wanted to do something extra special for the silent auction.  Several of us pooled resources to have a custom lightsaber built by Simpi Sabers.  This lightsaber was silver and blue, with a yellow blade – the colors of The Sam Bish Foundation.  And while lightsabers have always been known as an “elegant weapon”… the Bish saber is particularly beautiful when you understand its symbolism.  When it was all over, it was Sam’s grandfather who placed the winning bid on the lightsaber – crafted in memory of his grandson – and I kind of like the fact that this blade will stay in the family.

Once again, the Bish Bash was a huge success – with plenty of smiling children and good memories!  For more information on The Sam Bish Foundation, visit http://www.sambishfoundation.org/

Sci-Fi Spectacular at Blossom

The Cleveland Orchestra summer concert series at Blossom Music Center is something of a tradition in northeast Ohio.  Therefore, when the orchestra invites Great Lakes Base, Ohio Garrison and Rancor Clan to be part of its “Sci-Fi Spectacular” concert – it is an opportunity NOT to be missed! 

The giant amphitheater is settled right in the middle of the 800 acres of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park; which giving the entire venue a very “Endor” vibe.  Which means a few early morning rainstorms passing over the area made for a beautiful (if not humid) afternoon.  This was my fourth tour of trooping for a concert at Blossom and still one of my favorite local venues.

Keeping with the “Endor” theme, would you believe the entrance to our dressing room is via a small “bunker” elevator, on the far side of the amphitheater?  Once our “small Rebel force,” as well as a few troopers and lone Mando Merc had a chance to suit up and make our way back up the hill towards the main entrance -- affectionately referred to as “the hill of death” – we spread out along the path, as guests began to camp out the best spot on the lawn for the concert.  As you can imagine, people would drop their folding chairs, coolers and blankets at the sight of us – wanting to get a picture with us; EXCEPT the guy who came with a fresh box of pizza… even a “jedi mind trick” wasn’t enough to get that guy to share.  When it came time for the concert to begin, some of us changed back to street clothes and other stayed in costume as our contact lead us to a section of open seats for us to enjoy the concert.

The Cleveland Orchestra kicked off the performance with (what else) the main theme from “Star Wars.”  After a medley of songs from popular sci-fi TV shows over the years, and the main theme from “Superman: the movie” (one of my personal favorites), it was time for the “Star Trek” portion of the evening; and to welcome the evening’s special guest.  George Takei was the guest narrator for the evening.  Mr. Takei told the story of how the original crew of the USS Enterprise was purposefully designed as a metaphor for the various cultures of Earth – coming together to create a better future.

 During intermission, you could see kids playing on the amphitheater lawn with toy lightsabers – which as a Star Wars fan, always brings a smile.  Since Fuzzball was our resident Jedi Knight for the evening, I challenged him (there MAY have been some “chicken clucking” involved on my part) to go over there and play along with any kid looking to test their skill against an fully trained Jedi – the same way I did, many years ago.  I’ll give my former “padawan” credit, he stood his ground expertly against a pair of rambunctious “younglings” – one wielding a double-bladed lightsaber – as well as simply interacted with a group of kids barely old enough to lift the lightsabers they were carrying.  As Fuzzball’s former Star Wars costuming mentor, watching this made me very proud!

Overall, it was another great concert at Blossom Music Center as our crew packed up to head for home from the “forest moon” of Cuyahoga Falls. 

It's What We Do

Most fans know the Star Wars universe timeline is centered (literally) on the events in "Episode IV: A New Hope" specifically the “Battle of Yavin” (BBY) when the Death Star was destroyed.  In the case of Great Lakes Base, our timeline for keeping record of events begins around June 3rd, 2006 and the opening weekend of "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination” touring exhibit at COSI in Columbus, Ohio.  I was there, and for many of us (now veteran) Great Lakes Base members -- this was our first experience with a major Lucasfilm event, as well as welcoming Rebel Legion members from across the country.

Here is a brief “timeline” of history, as it pertains to Great Lakes Base development:

5BBC = Jedi Knights of Cleveland (Fanforce) formed

4BBC = “Attack of the Clones” in theaters

3BBC = JKOC early costuming events with RL and 501st
1BBC = Celebration III and “Revenge of the Sith” in theaters

1BBC = Cincinnati Pops at Blossom

0BBC = Star Wars “Where Science Meets Imagination” at COSI

3ABC = Great Lakes Base formed

5ABC = Inaugural “Star Wars Night” with Detroit Tigers

6ABC = Cleveland Pops concert  (Brian and Paul’s “Duel of the Fates” performance)

7ABC = Toledo Walleye – GLB with the Stanley Cup

8ABC = Great Lakes Base Five Year Anniversary

Eight years later (or 8 ABC) and there have been many historic moments within Great Lakes Base -- too many to list on a simple blog post.  The reason I included The Jedi Knights of Cleveland in this timeline is that I know for a fact, because I was leading most of them, that many our early Rebel Legion/501st costuming events were organized via the JKOC – before the Midwest Base (now Great Lakes Base) website and event medals were even up and running.  It was around the time when Cincinnati Pops performed at Blossom Music Center when most of our local Star Wars costuming events migrated over to Rebel Legion.  I remember the debate among the MWB command staff (back when I was OH Captain) over the merits of awarding online “medals” to people for trooping. While there were good points on both for and against the practice, I’m pleased to see the tradition has survived because IMHO those tiny digital symbols that show up in your profile (whether you have 2-3, or close to 300+ ) represent more then just some form of bragging rights… they represent our HISTORY!

This year also happens to mark the FIVE YEAR ANNIVERSARY of Great Lakes Base!  To help celebrate this milestone, GLB has adopted a special logo to commemorate the event and is planning to hold a special celebration later this year. Keep an eye on the GLB forums for more information.

In researching this blog post, I discovered that marching in the Avon Heritage Duct Tape festival marked this Rebel Pilot/Jedi’s  280th successful “mission” as a member of Rebel Legion!  That’s important when you consider all the miles travelled, charity work donated, friendships and other life experiences that have transpired as a result of being part of the greater timeline that is Great Lakes Base, because, as we say...

“It’s what we do!”

Why (We) Love R2-D2

by: Kurt Zimmerman

photo courtesy FoogyOne

This morning R2-D2 and I had the privilege of visiting the University of Michigan C. S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, with several members of the 501st and Rebel Legion. There is always at least one memorable surprise with any hospital visit, and today did not disappoint.

R2 and I at first visited rooms on our own while the rest of our Star Wars group suited up.  We went from room to room, accompanied by a hospital nurse, to visit the young patients who could not leave their rooms to see all the characters in the conference room.  There were photos, wide grins, happy waves, and appreciative glances from moms and envious looks from dads who wished they had their own R2-D2; nothing out of the ordinary.

We then visited a young lady who was resting peacefully in her bed, her eyes closed.  Her nurse and mom both told her she had a visitor, and R2 let out a happy beep for hello.  There was no response and her mom said, “Look, R2 is waving at you,” and the young patient glanced over, unimpressed at the astromech’s waving utility arms.

 It is difficult to know exactly what to do when you visit a patient’s room, since going in as strangers we are unaware of the challenges they are facing.  This young lady was very lethargic, possibly a victim of a stroke or head injury? (I didn’t know?)  But R2 is not one to be ignored, so he carefully nudged up to the young lady’s bed until he touched it.  Then he gently pushed, and pushed again -- and again.  Before long, he had the hospital bed rocking back and forth.  He let out a cheerful series of beeps and kept nudging his way into the bed.

Like I mentioned earlier, each outing yields at least one surprise, and this young lady, who was once indifferent to her mechanical visitor, started to giggle.  It was subdued at first, but as R2 continued to demand her attention, she started laughing.  Despite the obvious challenges she was dealing with earlier, she was now fully engaged and laughing!

Her mom stood nearby, shocked. Her trembling hand covered her open mouth, and she was weeping.  I can only guess that this was the first time she had seen her daughter laugh since whatever distress had befallen her; there was no way for me to know?  But the nurse who had been escorting R2 and me between rooms suddenly left the room, also in tears, mumbling something like: “well, that was awesome…”

R2 stopped rocking and tried another utility arm wave.  This time, the young patient responded by raising her arm, fingers splayed in all directions, weakly waving back.  The moment had been made, for everyone present to remember forever.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I love R2D2!