Chuck Morse - USSA executive, resort developer

Charles “Chuck” Morse, former executive director of the U.S. Ski Association Far West Division, passed away in La Habra, California, on October 6, 2025. He was 93.

Morse began skiing while serving in the U.S. Army Special Forces in Germany in the early 1950s. He later served as a project manager on Apollo space missions. His passion for snowsports led him into a career of more than a half-century in resort development, management, promotion and marketing.

Representing the U.S. Ski Association, Morse appeared before a U.S. congressional committee on land development in the West and wrote environmental case studies for the U.S. Forest Service on development of recreational lands. In 1975 he directed the USSA-FIS Congress, hosting 47 countries. He was general manager of Tahoe Donner and co-developer of Mountain High, both in California, and held sales and marketing positions at Snowbird, Utah and at Vail Resorts.

Morse developed the “Ski the Sierra” and “Ski America First” marketing initiatives for Ski Industries America and wrote the Boy Scouts handbook for skiing. World Ski Events, Morse’s learn-to-ski program, taught more than 7,500 high-school students. He also served as regional director for the National Ski Patrol Far West Division.