I am not sure if I should be...

[shedthefear]

I am not sure if I should be excited or overwhelmed. Hello my name is Chris, and I live in Salem. I want to get more involved in the community. I see you guys doing different events and am curious how I might be able to volunteer to be part of that?

Any help, suggestions, or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all in advance!

[Pixelito]

Hey there, Chris!

I'm going to preface this by stating that I am a total newbie here and have not been to any events, as I just finished my armor the other day.

As somebody fairly new to all this, I can confirm that you aren't alone in being overwhelmed! There's a lot more to the 501st than most people expect. You should certainly be excited too, though!

From what I understand, spotters are almost always needed at events. They help out all the people in costume, as well as many other important things! There is a spotter section here where you can likely find out more information and volunteer for specific events.

If you're interested in the costuming aspect and are ready to take the plunge and start building, you can find information about acceptable costumes and requirements here: http://databank.501st.com/databank/Membership:JoinUs

I'm sure a veteran member will have MUCH more insight than I do and hopefully they don't mind me chiming in before I've even been accepted! 

[CJ49er]

Welcome Chris!

What Pix said    
Spotters are very valuable, so sign up whenever you can. It will give you insight on how things work, and may help you with choosing a costume (if that's part of your plan)


Chris

[L Kamino]

Yes indeed.  The research and decision process was overwhelming for me too.  So much that I had to step away from it for a while.  Don't give up!  This is very rewarding and so much fun!

I didn't help as a spotter before joining with my costume,  but see now how helpful that would have been with the process.  Having a costume with limited visibility, the spotters have been so appreciated.  You would have the added bonus of seeing the costumes up close, how we get into them, how happy the kids (of all ages) are to see us.

Hope to see you soon!

Lori

[Lidocaine]

The UFO parade in McMinneville is coming up this month, and then the Starlight Parade in June are both really fun events that we always need spotters for!

Always feel free to ask questions too, like others have said it can be a bit daunting at first trying to figure out costumes! Feel free to share your progress and thoughts and we'll try to help out as much as we can.

[MetalJedi]

Hi Chris,

Welcome to the forums! You've taken your first step into a larger universe.

You have lots of choices to make when you want to have a Star Wars costume, but we will do our best to help you along the way.

You are always welcome to help out at our events as a spotter. That is a good way to meet our members and see some of the costumes in person.

If you have any questions, then please feel free to ask.

[jj49]

Welcome Chris...I am pretty new to all this too I have only been official for 2 troops since joining in April. My husband joined the 501st last June, but I couldn't decide at all what character I wanted to do....most my favorites aren't very well known. i spotted at events he attended and I think it helped a LOT, for me anyway. It made me not as nervous once trooping as I had watched everyone for a bit first as to how things work.  Every event is valued as a spotter. Since now in costume I forget to take photos and/or don't have the ability, plus helping everyone is really fun too. You get to experience the joy and excitement of the kids and crowd too. Bigger events need spotters so much that some 501st are spotters too. You get to experience a lot and also helps you narrow down what you would like to do costuming.  As everyone also said, the forum is super! So much support when and as you need it. 

[shedthefear]

Thank you all for the wonderful feedback. I will look into doing some spotter work to start out with. I currently do not have a costume, nor do I even know what is needed or what I may want. I look forward to meeting some of you through these events.

Thank you again for the warm welcome!

Chris

[MissyThing]

Hi, Chris. We would absolutely love to have you join us at some of our events. Check out the Spotter Check In Thread to see upcoming events. As Luke mentioned we definitely need some help at both the UFO parade and the Starlight Parade. If you have any questions about being a spotter please just let me know. Hope to see you soon!


Sent from the Jedi Temple