Benjamin Charlie (b. 1941)
Ben Charlie was a competitive cross-country skier from Old Crow in the 1960s. He and others were trained by Father Mouchet. Ben and Isaac Thomas was able to ski a mile in six minutes in good conditions. In 1963, Ben and Martha Benjamin entered the U.S. national championships in New Hampshire before competing in the Canadian national championships in Ottawa. Ben Charlie was invited to the men’s training camp for the 1964 Olympics but didn’t qualify for the Games.1)
For over thirty years, Ben Charlie hosted radio programming in the Gwich’in language at CHON-FM Indigenous Radio for Northern Native Broadcasting Yukon (NNBY). When NNBY produced both radio and television shows, Ben also worked as a television reporter in Gwitch’in. During this time he interviewed Gwich’in citizens in Gwich’in for special segments of the NEDAA news program. The episodes have been recognized as priceless education tools and resources for language and culture preservation.2)
Ben received a Lifetime Achievement Award from CHON-FM. He received the Yukon Historical and Museums Association 2014 History Maker Award. He is also an accomplished fiddler and musician. In 2025, at age 84, Ben still worked five days a week hosting his live show, Vuntat Njiik Nakaii, and on Saturdays hosting Vun Drin So.3)