Francis, Theodore, jr.

Born at Malone, NY; because the Mohawk Nation straddles the US-Canadian border, he attended a French-speaking oral school for the deaf in Montreal. Unhappy there, he transferred to the Rochester School for the Deaf, then to the New York State School for the Deaf at Rome, graduating 1980. Enrolled in St. Paul Technical Vocational Institute in Minnesota but was thrown out for immature behavior. Worked for a while as a carpenter, then worked in a clinic at the Mohawk Tribe of Akwesasne (St. Regis Mohawk). Had an ongoing struggle with alcoholism. Sister, also deaf, was Tina Marie Francis (q.v.).