Hesquiaht Braves basketball legend Constant Napolean Charleson, or “Nupps”, was honoured throughout an all-native invitational basketball tournament hosted by his family on April 16 to 19 in Port Alberni.
Charleson was player, coach, manager and a strong believer in all-native sports. Before he passed away in September 2022, he was working towards reviving the annual Hesquiaht tournament that faded when the pandemic paused sporting events in 2020.
“He wanted to focus on making it all native just so we can have a place for our kids, and they can get their chance,” said his son Jason.
The Con “Nupps” Charleson Memorial Invitational Tournament saw about 500 First Nations athletes from 40 B.C. teams play across four gyms in seven divisions: U13 girls and boys, U17 girls and boys, men’s, women’s and masters. There was also a co-ed U10 exhibition game.
“He would have been so happy,” said Jason, who travelled from the Sunshine Coast to take part in the hoops weekend.
“There is so much I miss about him. Just his love and caring he had from each and every one of us right from his clan to his grandchildren. He was very supportive of school and basketball,” he said.
Charleson had seven brothers and seven sisters: late Christopher Sr., late Patrick Sr., late Francis, Joseph, David, Darryl, Tony, Marge, late Eilleen, Linda, Mamie Jr., Emma, Corrine and late Colline.
“He taught us a lot. He was a really great coach. We won a lot of games under him. There used to be seven of us brothers on one team,” said brother Darryl. “I sure miss him now. He was somebody a lot of people, especially the basketball community, really looked up to.”
Charleson and all his siblings went to residential school.
“The whole family. Every child went to residential. We spent a lot of time away from our parents when we were children,” said Darryl.
“I went for 12 years,” said older sister Marge. “I was in Christie for eight years and then I went to St. Mary’s Mission for four years. Out of a whole year we were only home for like three weeks.”
Darryl said Nupps fell in love with basketball early.
“Up in Hot Springs there was an abandoned house on stilts, and they put basketball hoops in there. It was just a small little house, but that was the start,” said Darryl.
Nupps is survived by his father Pat Charleson Sr., who spent the weekend cheering for his family in a section of the Alberni Athletic Hall known as “Charleson’s Corner”.
“This is great. I’m glad to see so many people show their love of my son,” said Charleson Sr.
Nupps had nine daughters and four sons with wife Arlene Ganske. Jason told the Ha-Shilth-Sa that there are 40 grandchildren in the Nupps Clan, and if you add the grandchildren, there are more.
“It is a legacy left by him. So many of us have played basketball in each of our families,” said Jason.
“Thank you to everyone that came to support and honour my father. It meant the world to us. We are all filled with pride after it’s all said and done with the turnout,” he said.
‘Do it for Grandpa No. 24’
Charleson was known for wearing the Hesquiaht Braves jersey No. 24. Red and white tournament sweaters featured the No. 24 and kids ran around the court with posters that read, ‘Do it for Grandpa No. 24’.
When Jason first started playing for the Hesquiaht Braves, he says his dad passed on the No. 24 jersey to him and he took No. 34.
That tradition was carried on in this tournament as the hosting female Nupps Clan team saw Anita Charleson-Touchie take to the court in the No. 34 jersey with her daughter Jada sporting No. 24.
Jason’s daughter Azayliah played in the U13 division wearing a No. 24 Ravens jersey and his son Breven would also wear No. 24 when he played on the junior team.
‘Wolf comes from the killer whale’
The Charleson family crest is an orca transforming into a wolf known as the “kakawin cheelth”, according to Jason.
“It’s the transformation from whale to wolf. It is said that the wolf comes from the killer whale,” he said.
Tournament t-shirts featured the orca and wolf, and Nuu-chah-nulth carver Vince Smith from Zeballos created a stunning cedar trophy with the crest for champion teams to hoist.
Jason shared a story his father told him a few years ago, before he passed. It involved a Mowachaht elder and biologist observing something remarkable on a beach.
“They saw a killer whale come onto the beach, you know how they can beach themselves, and when it beached itself, a white wolf ran into the forest. That biologist said, ‘I know what I saw, but if I was to ever tell people what I saw, people would think I’m crazy’.”
Charleson would have celebrated 74 years around the sun on April 19. Looking forward to 2027, the Con “Nupps” Charleson Memorial Invitational will transform into the Con “Nupps” Legacy Tournament. The family is hoping to make it an annual event.
