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Stormtrooper Serves Community – and Communitas!

Stories Staff Stormtrooper Serves Community – and Communitas!

Andrew was eight years old, sitting in a movie theatre in Mission BC, when his life was forever changed.

He was watching a film unlike anything anyone had ever seen before; a film that would have a global impact on how films are made and stories are told. The film would influence Andrew’s career and his passions in life.

The film was Star Wars.

“I remember everything about that first experience. My mind was blown ten times over,” Andrew recalls. “Star Wars has been a part of my life ever since then.”

For most Star Wars fans, that last comment might be made casually, referencing an enthusiasm for watching the entire movie franchise and purchasing memorabilia. For Andrew, it’s quite a bit more.

Andrew is a bona-fide Stormtrooper. Not only that, he is the Commanding Officer of the Outer Rim Garrison (British Columbia) of the 501^st Legion. It’s a role he enjoys thoroughly and takes very seriously.

Andrew became a Stormtrooper in 2019, after his Stormtrooper costume met the requirements for membership (costume vetting is rigorous, with multi-level standards, the highest of which require costumes to be screen-accurate down to the last bolt and rivet.) Andrew has Tie Pilot and Boba Fett costumes but most often appears as a Stormtrooper.

Andrew, with actor Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, who is a member of the 501^st Canadian Garrison in Ontario

According to their website, the 501^st Legion is a volunteer organization “formed for the express purpose of bringing together costume enthusiasts under a collective identity within which to operate.” Through their building and wearing of quality costumes for Star Wars -related events, they seek to promote interest in Star Wars. They also contribute to their local community through charity and volunteer work such as attending gatherings like Fan Expo or special events held on Star Wars Day. (For the uninitiated, Star Wars Day is May 4^th – as in “May the Fourth Be With You.”) In 2025, the BC Garrison directly raised more than $30,000 for charity. The Garrison also supported other organization’s charitable events, indirectly raising more than $2.5 million.

“When I first got involved with this, I wanted to be a Stormtrooper,” Andrew says. “But it’s the charity aspect that has become the main motivator for me.”

Andrew in his Tie Fighter Pilot costume posing with a person served by Communitas at Halloween

It is serving others that also drives Andrew in his career as a computer specialist and software developer, work that he has done for more than 35 years. Today, Andrew serves as the Business Solutions Specialist for Communitas Supportive Care Society. In his role, Andrew is tasked with problem-solving; creating software solutions that allow staff who work directly with the people they serve to do their work more easily.

He hasn’t always worked for the social services sector, so when he discovered Communitas, he realized he’d found a unique opportunity to bring his expertise in computers and software writing together with his passion for charity.

“It was the opportunity to work for a charity that drew me to Communitas,” Andrew says. “Knowing that my work helps others do their work better is my favourite part of my job.”

Andrew as Boba Fett

Another thing that Andrew has noticed since coming to work for Communitas, is that his co-workers genuinely and openly express their gratitude.

“People here actually go out of their way to say ‘thank you’ when you’ve done something to help them. That feels pretty special,” he says, adding that he’s also had this experience as a Stormtrooper.

“It’s pretty cool when a Star Wars celebrity will stop to say something like ‘we’re so proud of the work you do’ – that’s an amazing feeling.”

Andrew and his droid at a Communitas BBQ

As well as being a software specialist and Stormtrooper, Andrew is also a droid builder. On Star Wars Day this year, Andrew and his droid will be at an event hosted by Industrial Light and Magic, the special effects division of Lucasfilm in Vancouver – another unique privilege.

As he reflects on his experiences both in his career and in his volunteer work, Andrew wonders what it would be like to talk to his eight-year-old self, sitting in that theatre in Mission.

“If I could tell eight-year-old me about all the technology that I get to work with every day, that would be one thing,” Andrew says. “But if I could tell me that I would become a Stormtrooper, that I would meet C3PO or Chewbacca or any number of Star Wars celebrities, that would be mind-blowing all over again.”