Douglas L. D. "Doug" Bell, C.M.

    Doug is a former military serviceman who served during World War II and was a radio operator in the north before becoming the head of the Department of Transportation, a City of Whitehorse Councillor, the publisher of the Yukon News and a Yukon Commissioner.

    During his time at the Yukon News, he was a regular columnist documenting Yukon life along with being the publisher of the paper. Doug was appointed Deputy Commissioner in 1977, followed by one year as the Administrator and then six years as the Commissioner. During Doug's time in the office, he facilitated the transition of the Commissioner being removed from the Executive Council. Doug was the first Commissioner to swear in a fully elected Yukon Government. Doug was able to get the Commissioner of Yukon to be recognized as a member of the Vice-Regal family along with the Lieutenant-Governors. Doug used his time as Commissioner to be an ambassador for Yukon across the world.

    Doug is always happy to share the history of the Yukon and continues to do so, speaking at the schools every Remembrance Day and being a member of the MacBride Museum board. Doug was awarded the Order of Canada in 1989 and the Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee medal in 2002.

    Douglas Leslie Dewey Bell was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan on June 15, 1926. In 1942, at the age of 17, Bell joined the Royal Canadian Air Force before he graduated from high school. It was in the Air Force that he developed an interest in radio operation and became a wireless air gunner. He left the Air Force in 1945 and returned to Moose Jaw where he worked at a dairy and took vocational training, graduating as a Radio Operator. In 1946, Bell began his career with the Ministry of Transportation that saw him work in different parts of the country. In 1968, he was appointed Telecommunications Area Manager in Whitehorse, a position he held until 1977.

    In 1976, he successfully ran for a seat on the Whitehorse City Council. In 1977, he was appointed to serve as the Yukon's Deputy Commissioner under Commissioner Art Pearson. Upon the resignation in 1979 of Commissioner Ione Christensen, Bell took over her duties in the interim capacity of Administrator. In 1980, Bell officially became the Yukon's 34th Commissioner. He retired from the post in March 1986. He was the federal government's top official in Yukon during one of the most significant transitions in the territory's history: the final stages of the changeover to responsible government in Yukon. He also convinced the Governor General at the time, Ed Schreyer, to invite the territorial commissioners to the annual Governor General and Lieutenant Governors annual conferences.

    After his retirement, Doug chaired many committees such as the Emergency Measures Organization, the Federal Interdepartmental Coordinating Committee (FICC), the Northern Resources Conference, and the Hootalinqua Land Use Study. He was also an active member of the Whitehorse Legion, Branch 254 for many years and he enjoyed sharing stories with others. He also operated a home-based business called Triple Image which offered writing, photography and public speaking services. In 1986, he became publisher of the Yukon News. He also wrote a weekly column in the paper. Bell was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1989. In 2019, he received the Order of Yukon and was part of the first group of recipients of this prestigious Yukon award.

Ione J. Christensen

    Ione Cameron spent her childhood in Fort Selkirk where her dad was posted as an RCMP officer and then moved with her family to Whitehorse.

    Ione's contributions have spanned decades and in many areas such as public service, cultural ambassadorship, community service and more. Ione has been a trail breaker in politics here in Yukon. In 1971, she became Yukon's first woman Justice of the Peace, Judge of the Juvenile Court, Commissioner of Marriages and Clerk of Small Debts Court.

    In 1975, she was elected the first woman Mayor of Whitehorse and in 1979, she became the first woman Commissioner. And, in 1999, she was appointed the first woman Senator of the Yukon. In 1994, Ione was appointed to the Order of Canada. In 1996, Ione was appointed the Sponsor of HMCS Whitehorse and went to Halifax in 1997 to launch the ship.

    In 1998, after many requests by Parks Canada (four years), two friends and Ione had a Sourdough Hot Cake Tent at Lake Bennett to serve all the Chilkoot hikers. Ione's sourdough starter recently had a DNA test that came back revealing it was 120 years old and did indeed date back to the Klondike Gold Rush.

    Ione has contributed to the economic well-being of the Yukon with executive and board appointments in companies such as Hospitality North, Petro-Canada, Cameras North and Panarctic Oil Ltd. She has also written several books.

Patricia "Pat" Ellis

    Patricia has been a grand contributor to the arts and culture of Yukon past and present through her writing and art but also through her contributions as a citizen, volunteer, squatter and pioneer.

    Pat has researched and written books on local history, such as "The Squatters of Downtown Whitehorse", which is a compilation of stories of the good ole days. Pat has also donated hundreds of hours to the Yukon Art Society in helping design and coordinate many murals around town. The anniversary mural at the Yukon Transportation Museum and the RCMP mural are two spots where you will find her work. Pat has also written many articles for the Whitehorse Star and other local media on subjects like the war and the Canol Refinery that have helped preserve the history of the territory.

    Pat also volunteers with the Anglican Church Women's group that organizes the annual Christmas Bazaar, raises money for the church and distributes funds to various outreach projects. Pat has spent many hours beautifying Stringer Park, located beside the Old Log Church, is the coordinator of the Sidewalk Pulpit on 4th Avenue and has produced books on the history of the Anglican Church in Yukon.

Judy Gingell, O.C.

    Judy Gingell is a respected Kwanlin Dun First Nation elder, former Chair of the Council for Yukon Indians and signatory to the Umbrella Final Agreement.

    For more than 40 years, Judy has promoted and advanced Aboriginal rights and governance in Yukon. Judy was part of the 1973 delegation to Ottawa that initiated the Yukon land claims negotiation process. As Chair of the Council of Yukon First Nations (1989-1995), she was instrumental in self-governance and land claims negotiation with the Government of Canada.

    In 1995, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien named her Commissioner for the Yukon Territory, the first indigenous person appointed to the position. She served until 2000. Judy is renowned for her ability to build bridges between peoples, notably by raising awareness of First Nations culture by creating the annual Commissioner's Potlatch.

    In 2001, Judy received the Commissioner's Public Volunteer Service Award and in 2009, she received the Order of Canada.

Gary Hewitt

    Gary Hewitt has been heavily involved in a wide variety of sports and community organizations for over 40 years, as well as running his business, Arctic Star Printing.

    He has been a part of the executive, a volunteer, a coach, an official and a sponsor of teams for the Yukon Curling community for over 40 years. He has been head official for many Territorial and National Curling Championships in Whitehorse. Not only was he an official but during the 2007 Canada Winter Games, he provided support in other facets of the planning and coordination for curling.

    Over the years, Gary has been involved as either a Mission Staff Member or the Assistant Chef de Mission for the Canada Winter and Summer Games on four occasions. Gary was involved with the Arctic Winter Games from 1970 to the present. During the years the games were hosted in Whitehorse, he was a major volunteer with the Whitehorse Arctic Winter Games Host Society. On the years when the games were out of the territory, he volunteered with Team Yukon.

    Gary has also been a director with the Yukon Volunteer Bureau and has been an active member of the Whitehorse Elks Club. As an Elk, he was instrumental in the Elks sponsorship of apparel for volunteers for the Canada Day activities with the Whitehorse Legion and also participated as a volunteer for the event.

    Over the years, Gary has provided volunteer and sponsorship support to a wide variety of organizations (ElderActive, Yukon Squash Association and the Golf Association of Yukon), teams, and individuals with little or no recognition. Gary's continued leadership enables these organizations to successfully benefit the community.

    In December 2021, Gary received the national Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers.

Rolf Hougen, O.C.

    Rolf Hougen established the Yukon Foundation in 1980 that administers scholarships and grants to Yukon students entering post-secondary school. The funds are collected through Yukoners who pass away and leave their estate to the Foundation.

    Also, in 1980, Rolf formed the Canadian Satellite Communications Inc., a publicly traded company created to deliver much needed television and radio to remote and underserved communities, including the north and right across Canada. It was a pioneering satellite technology that achieved several world's firsts.

    Rolf received the Order of Canada in 1987, the Commissioner's Public Service Volunteer Award in 1994, and the Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee medal in 2002.

    Rolf has spent his life preserving Yukon's history and has worked hard with MacBride Museum and the Yukon Archives to ensure Yukon's history is saved and shared with all. Rolf has donated his large photo collection (about 40,000 photos) to the Archives and he is responsible for the busts around Main Street of those who contributed to the history of the territory (among them, Edith Josie, Robert Services, Sam Steele.)

    Rolf was the Honorary Consul for France in Yukon from 1980-1999 when his son Erik succeeded him. Family always comes first with Rolf and he has passed on his businesses to his children and grandchildren, most of whom still live here.

Sam Johnston

    Sam Johnston is a well-respected Teslin Tlingit Elder with an impressive political history.

    He served as Chief of the Teslin Tlingit Council for more than a decade, and he was also a Member of the Yukon Legislative Assembly. Through his role as Speaker of the Yukon Legislative Assembly, Sam held the distinction of being the first Aboriginal Speaker in Canada.

    In addition to his political accolades, Sam is an accomplished archer, dog musher and Tlingit dancer. Among his long list of accolades, Sam received the Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee medal in 2002 and in 2003, the Commissioner's Public Service Volunteer Award. That same year, he was inducted into the Yukon Sports Hall of Fame.

Lyall Murdoch

    Lyall Murdoch has spent his entire adult life dedicated to providing entertainment in the Yukon.

    In 1969, he was part of the volunteer version for the Frantic Follies presented by the Whitehorse Drama Club which was a weekly event in the Whitehorse Inn Ballroom. In 1970, The Frantic Follies was formed as a limited company and over the years, Lyall co-created and co-produced the show into the success it was known for.

    The Frantic Follies ran for 48 years with Lyall being on stage for all but the last two years it ran. When the Follies first started, performers were sparse and now there have been two generations of Yukon youth inspired by the show. The Frantic Follies began before there were dance schools and now there are several in the Yukon and most with teachers who are alumni of the Frantic Follies.

    Some past performers have taken their talent and gone onto national and international careers as actors, singers, musicians and dancers. Lyall used the Frantic Follies to help encourage tourism to the Yukon.

    Lyall received the Commissioner's Public Volunteer Service Award in 1984.