Frank, an expert in the craft of stick making, and his brother Alex, an outdoorsman who knew the wooded area around and how to maintain a steady flow of Hickory tree logs, started their all-Indigenous Lacrosse Stick Factory in the 1930s. Looking for someone with business experience, they reached out to Colin Chisholm, which led to the setup of a marketing and distribution system and eventually resulted in Chisholm becoming a partner in their new lacrosse business operations. Frank became a stabilizing force in the Akwesasne community as the workers trusted him and the community respected him. His vision of producing the highest-quality lacrosse sticks for the world was becoming a reality – indeed, a manufacturing dynasty with the factory at one point accounting for 97% of all lacrosse stick sales to the global market and employing over a hundred Mohawk craftspeople. Frank didn’t just lead in manufacturing; he also supported the local area’s lacrosse teams through team sponsorship and taking a personal interest in the growth of the game by supplying sticks to all minor teams in the area. Many years after he had passed, Frank would receive recognition and appreciation by the people in Akwesasne as the old “factory road” was changed in his honour to his Mohawk name, becoming “The Tewesatene Road.”
