Whitney-area woman proud to proclaim Darth Vader is her father

Like a lot of teenagers, Dawn Metz could be a bit of a rebel. Unlike most teens, she had to contend with the possibility that her father might threaten to seal her in carbonite.

"I guess her carbonite was her bedroom," said Dawn's father, Damien Metz, who portrays Darth Vader with the Neon City Garrison of the 501st Legion, an international group of Star Wars costume enthusiasts.

Metz said that all kidding aside, his daughter, who turns 21 this year, is awesome, and he's thrilled with the way she has turned out. She has been involved in costuming with her Whitney-area family for a decade, starting when she dressed as a young Jedi for a Disney cruise trip.

The feeling is mutual.

"He's a good dad," Dawn Metz said. "He taught me to be strict and take care of myself and to be independent and strong."

Those are qualities one wouldn't be surprised Darth Vader would pass on, although Dawn Metz said her father's parenting style owes more to his time in the Navy than it does the Empire. What might be surprising is that he also passed along a love of charity work.

"The charity work started almost as soon as we officially joined the 501st in January of 2000," Damien Metz said. "We started working with Make-A-Wish, Susan G. Komen and Shade Tree."

The Neon City Garrison has been involved with many charities over the years, and charity is one of stated missions of the 501st, which is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year.

"While our organization was founded to simply provide a collective identity for costuming fans with similar interests," Metz said, the mission statement on 501st.com reads, "The 501st is proud to put its resources to good use through fundraising, charity work and volunteerism."

Typically the group shows up in costume at an event and acts as entertainment and a draw. Most of the members dress up as stormtroopers, although there are a few assorted specialist stormtroopers, bounty hunters or imperial officers who may appear from time to time. Dawn Metz and her mother, Jamie, have made appearances as Princess Leia, and more often than not Damien Metz comes as Darth Vader.

"We used to do appearances at Shade Tree and we'd bring a copy of the movie for kids to watch," Damien Metz said. "We shake hands and sign autographs. Everybody seems to love the bad guys. I don't know why; they just do."

Dawn Metz said she loves helping kids and seeing them happy. The father and daughter said kids usually aren't scared of them; in fact, they love the appearances and see the costume enthusiasts as celebrities or movies brought to life.

"We scare more adults than kids," Dawn Metz said. "If a kid does get scared, we show them a piece of our skin to show them that we're human, and they're fine."

Damien Metz isn't above scaring his daughter's new boyfriends with his costumes, although it isn't Darth Vader who meets them at the door.

"I've got an Angel of Death costume," he said. "It's a regular death costume with a staff with a ram's head and big, black angel wings. It's a lot scarier than Darth."

Damien Metz first got involved with Star Wars costuming by a fluke. When the previews for "Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace" came out, his friends saw it first and teased him about being in the trailer. His hair, beard and facial structure resembled that of Liam Neeson's Jedi characer closely enough that his Qui-Gon Jinn costume was halfway done already.

From there, it was a short step to having a friend who was a Hollywood costumer making him a Darth Vader costume.

"I always thought he was ominous," Damien Metz said. "So I got the costume and wore it to a Halloween contest at the Rio."

At that event he ran into Darth Maul and a stormtrooper. All three had heard of the 501st, but their chance meeting led to the formation of the local chapter.

The group makes appearances at many events each year. The most public are its participation in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Henderson and the Fourth of July parade in Summerlin. Dawn Metz walks proudly beside her father at these events, he in his black helmet and she in her father's old stormtrooper costume, although she's thinking about getting a Boba Fett costume.

"My daughter has always referred to her parents as 'weird but cool,' " Damien Metz said.

Contact Sunrise/Whitney View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 380-4532.