FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The 501st Legion is the world's largest Star Wars costuming organization, with over 14,000 active members in more than 60 countries. Founded in 1997, the Legion is dedicated to celebrating Star Wars through screen-accurate costumes and charitable volunteerism. Learn more at 501st.com.

The Bluegrass Garrison is the Kentucky unit of the 501st Legion. Established on May 4th, 2018, our members are organized into squads serving communities across the Commonwealth. We volunteer at charity events, conventions, parades, and community gatherings throughout the state.

Please fill out our Event Request Form. Once completed, your event will be passed along to one of the Bluegrass Garrison's event coordinators who will contact you directly.

Typically we ask for 2-3 months advance notice for an event. All of our members are volunteers, so in order to coordinate our troopers and best fulfill your request, the more lead time you can provide us with the better.

Sorry, no. While you may have seen some photos online of members of the 501st Legion attending birthdays or weddings, the decision to do so is based region to region and is at the discretion of local groups. Members of the Bluegrass Garrison have adopted an internal policy to not attend birthdays or weddings.

While we do not charge a fee for appearances, we enthusiastically welcome donations made to your favorite charity in the name of the 501st Legion/Bluegrass Garrison. If you do not have a charity of choice, we would happily provide you with a list of some of our favorite causes.

Our members appear in screen-accurate Star Wars costumes at charity events, conventions, parades, movie premieres, and community gatherings. Our presence adds excitement for attendees of all ages, creates memorable photo opportunities, and helps draw attention to your cause. There is no charge for our appearances — we are all volunteers.

The Bluegrass Garrison covers the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky. While many of our members are based in the Louisville and Lexington areas, we have troopers across the state. Chances are there's probably a 501st Legion member in your area already!

To join, you must own an approved Star Wars "bad guy/gal/trooper" costume and be 18 years of age or older. Please visit the 501st membership requirements page for more details.

Members have to be 18 years of age to join. If you're under the age of 18 or have younglings who would like to participate, please visit the Kef Bir School, Kentucky's chapter of the Galactic Academy.

That really depends on how involved you would like to be. The 501st Legion does require you to participate in at least one official event per year in costume in order to remain an active trooper.

All of our members' costumes are "fan-made". If your goal is to join the 501st Legion we STRONGLY advise potential new members NOT to purchase costumes from any retail stores or online before checking with us first. More often than not, costumes purchased online or from retail stores do not meet 501st Legion requirements and will need extensive modifications. In most cases, it costs more time and money to modify a store-bought costume than to build one from scratch. Please visit our Join Us page where we can point you in the right direction.

Yes, the 501st Legion has minimum standards for all of our costumes. We like to say it "looks as if we just walked off of a Star Wars set". Once your costume is completed our Garrison Membership Liaison (GML) will review your application photos to make sure you've met all the requirements, or let you know what needs a bit more work. Please visit our Join Us page for more details.

Sorry no, the 501st Legion is made up of only the "bad guys/gals/troopers" from the Star Wars universe. However, Kentucky has several sister costuming clubs: Fulcrum Base (Rebel Legion) for the light side, Blue Moon Clan (Mandalorian Mercs) for Mandalorian costumes, and Jen Ar'rii Temple (Sith Dynasty) for Sith costumes.