When you take a tour of Rancho Obi-Wan your guide will be one of our amazing docents.
Jon Nagel
Jon has been a Rancho Obi-Wan volunteer since 2011, and a tour docent since 2014. He’s been a member of the 501st Legion as a TIE fighter pilot and a Republic Commando for over a decade, and was part of global leadership before stepping back in 2017. Jon was born in Oakland, CA, and has lived most of his life in the Golden State, with brief stints in Eugene, Oregon and Brunswick, Maine. Jon holds a BA in Theatre from CSU East Bay, and did post-graduate training at the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre. He was a resident actor at Impact Theatre in Berkeley for over a decade, performing in multiple world premieres, including Peter Sinn Nachtrieb’s Colorado and Enrique Urueta’s Learn to be Latina, in addition to numerous Shakespeare plays such as Macbeth, Richard III, As You Like It, Romeo and Juliet, and Comedy of Errors. Jon spent over 20 years teaching English and Drama at Irvington High School in Fremont and Bohannon Middle School in San Lorenzo before retiring from public education in 2022. Jon and his wife, Dr. Melissa Hillman, live in the East Bay and have a son, Jacob, and a daughter, Marian.
David Leonard
David is a lifelong Star Wars fan. The mythology, action and adventure of the Star Wars universe has flowed through him since he was six years old, when he first saw A New Hope back in 1977. “I remember being a bit star struck the first time I visited Rancho ObiWan because Steve Sansweet led the tour for us. Steve’s Star Wars Encyclopedia had a profound impact on my interest in Star Wars. It launched my entry into the expanded universe of books, and helped me to envision the broader expanse of the Star Wars galaxy.” The art gallery in the expansion room is his favorite part of the museum.
Dan is an Engineer who has worked in and around Silicon Valley for over 15 years in the manufacturing, defense, Clean tech, aerospace and the retail/fitness industries. He currently teaches engineering, fabrication, and prop making at a nationally ranked high school. Dan has been a volunteer at Rancho Obi Wan since 2011 and his tours focus on the silly side of Star Wars collecting and lore. A lifelong Star Wars fan, Dan is also a member of the 501st Legion. He and his wife live in Redwood City, CA.
David Buckley
Like many others, seeing Star Wars in 1977 fueled a passion of not just fandom but also in filmmaking. David Buckley took film and television production in college, worked as a video editor for a television news station, and has appeared in several television programs and a feature film. A member of both the 501st and the Rebel Legion Star Wars clubs, he and his wife Kim have volunteered at Rancho Obi Wan since 2012. David still possesses his now vintage Star Wars movie program from opening night…. along with many other collectibles over the decades since.
Dwayne Smith
Dwayne joined the Rancho Obi-Wan volunteer crew in 2012 and began leading tours as a docent in 2016.
Dwayne has an extensive creative arts background and has a passion for Star Wars replica prop building. He’s a member of both the 501st Legion and Rebel Legion costuming groups. Of his many crafted creations, his Darth Vader costume stands out as the favorite. Dwayne is also a long time collector of Star Wars memorabilia and is a member of the California Vintage Star Wars Collectors Club. Dwayne has four children and lives with his wife, Shannon near Redding California.
Michelle Norgan
The Force definitely runs strong with Michelle and her passion for Star Wars starts with her family. Her first influences came from her brother Dan, also a docent at Rancho Obi-Wan, who introduced her to a galaxy far, far away via his favorite movie, The Empire Strikes Back.
Star Wars became a strong common thread for them, something she doesn’t take for granted and was an enormous part of their childhood growing up together. Dan continues to be a tremendous influence in her life and for the two of them, Star Wars will always be a cornerstone of the foundation that helps to bind their relationship together.
For Michelle Rancho Obi-Wan is like family. She states she has never been part of a group or belonged to a group where the people have meant so much to her. Her experience with Rancho Obi-Wan is that it continues to be a place where people love and accept each other while sharing in the rich history of Star Wars. That acceptance and sense of community, along with its mission, is something that continues to inspire Michelle in her work at Rancho Obi-Wan.
Marc Morita
Living only 10 minutes away from Skywalker Ranch, it was apparent that Marc Morita would become a life-long Star Wars fan. He is an avid Lego Star Wars collector and builder, and many of his builds are on display in his classroom and Rancho Obi-Wan. Marc first visited Rancho Obi-Wan in 2015, and he hasn’t left. His ROW tours definitely highlight the collection as well as introduce his personal stories of fandom. He always encourages the members on his tours to share their knowledge and their connection to the Star Wars galaxy. Dawning the stormtrooper armor, Marc is also a member of the 501st Legion. Marc lives with his daughter Lily and his dog, Biggs Darklighter.
Yannik Morales
I was born in Guatemala city, Guatemala and came to the US in June of 1983. My passion and love for Star Wars, like millions of other people, came after watching A New Hope. I was blown away by all the Sci fi crammed in that movie. Aliens, spaceships, droids, heroes and villains, they were all so real to me. Living in Guatemala made Star Wars a bit inaccessible to me. I was young, couldn’t go anywhere without parents and there only a few places where you could see the movie and even fewer places to buy any merchandise at all. It wasn’t until I came to the US when I really caught up with Star Wars. I watched Empire and Jedi here and my collecting started. Action figures mostly. Fast forward to 2019. A co worker friend of mine told me that ROW was looking for volunteers and asked me if I would be interested. I, of course said yes. I started doing things like helping keep up the museum, organize the storage facility etc. I moved onto shadowing tours with some amazing docents and learned how to become one through them. I became a docent in July of 2023. Giving tours gives me great personal satisfaction. I enjoy seeing the expressions on our guests’ faces when we get past the library and we show them the main hallway. Talking and sharing Star Wars is exciting to me, I approach every tour with the same excitement as when I took the tour myself for the first time, it never gets old. I want my tours to be interactive, fun, educating and exciting. Don’t mind the occasional Dad joke or silly pun. I look forward to seeing you here.