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Marlena Hammen

@marlenahammen

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Sights and sounds, Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award dinner, 2026.

🎥 @justlaxmedia

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Dom Starsia is a 2026 recipient of the Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award. For more than three decades, Dom Starsia stood at the center of American lacrosse not merely as a coach, but as an advocate of the game’s deeper meaning. This Friday the recipients will gather in Syracuse to kick off the wooden stick festival weekend.

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Faithkeeper Michael Kanatakeron Mitchell of the Akwesasne Mohawk Nation is one of three 2026 Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award Recipients.

He has spent his life serving the game of lacrosse with a clarity of purpose that reflects the deepest intent of the Creator’s Game. Coming from a lacrosse stick-making family, the soft-spoken leader has emphasized responsibility over recognition, community over self, and continuity over convenience, principles that mirror the original purpose of lacrosse as a ceremonial and spiritual practice.

The award isn’t given based purely on playing career. It is given to people who have spent their lives building community through lacrosse, in the way that Alf did.

See the link in bio for more info on the dinner and award.

🎥 @jaidenmitchellfilms

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Ryan Sandy from Six Nations crafted the Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award soapstone carving. It has to be one of the coolest pieces of lacrosse art ever made.

The third annual dinner is one week from Friday. Link in bio to buy tickets and make donations. The award isn’t necessarily for the greatest players of all time. It honors those who have spent their life using lacrosse to build community and bring different cultures together.

📸 @thru_the_reddoor

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Last year Roy Simmons brought a hickory sapling to the Alfie Jacques award dinner and then planted it next to his grave. This gesture has inspired a larger display at a major summer tournament we’ll soon be able to announce. This year’s Alfie dinner will be Sept 11th in Syracuse. Link in bio.

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Last year’s Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award recipient, Roy Simmons Jr.

This year’s dinner will be September 11th in Syracuse, tickets still available. Link in bio.

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The Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award, in its third year, is a month away. September 11th in Syracuse, the same weekend as the Wood Stick Festival at Onondaga Lake. Link in bio.

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survived 68,012 steps w/ the Hammens

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girl bye

seriously though, thank you to those who have made these 4 years the absolute best. i love you all!

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Super excited to announce my verbal commitment to Bloomsburg University to continue my athletic career at the Division II level! Huge thank you to my coaches for believing in me, pushing me, and shaping me into the athlete and person I am. Every early morning, tough practice, and honest conversation made an impact. To my parents
- your support through every high and low means everything. None of this happens without your love and sacrifice, and I hope this makes you proud. Thank you Coach Hertz for this opportunity! Go Huskies!

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As Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ireland Lacrosse, and as a long-serving player, captain, coach and referee, Michael Kennedy’s career reflects a rare combination of competitive experience and stewardship of the game.

At a time when the sport had little footprint in Ireland, Kennedy became a central figure in its establishment and growth. He represented the Irish Men’s National Team across multiple eras, competing in 11 European and World Championship tournaments and serving as national team captain for six years. His return from retirement in 2015 to compete at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championship on Onondaga Nation territory remains a defining moment, underscored by receiving a Haudenosaunee Confederacy stamp in his Irish passport and the Federation of International Lacrosse “Spirit of Lacrosse” Award.

He co-founded the Dublin Lacrosse Club and the UCD Lacrosse Club, and has served both as head coach and administrator. In 2009 he led the establishment of Ireland Lacrosse as the sport’s National Governing Body, recognized by the European Lacrosse Federation and World Lacrosse. He also served as Event Director for the 2022 World Lacrosse Men’s U21 World Championship and World Festival in Limerick.

Kennedy’s leadership reached a defining moment in 2022 during preparations for the World Games in Birmingham, Alabama. When the Haudenosaunee Nationals—ranked third in the world—were temporarily excluded, Ireland Lacrosse, under Kennedy’s direction and in consultation with key leaders in the organization, made the decision to voluntarily vacate its qualified place so the game’s originators could compete. The decision resonated globally and Ireland Lacrosse was subsequently honored with the Musial Award for sportsmanship, recognizing this act of integrity within modern lacrosse.

Kennedy played a central role in ensuring the Haudenosaunee Men’s U21 team could travel to Ireland using their own passports. The event was marked by the presentation of traditional gifts and a guard of honor during the opening ceremony—a moment that underscored Kennedy’s belief that lacrosse governance must reflect the game’s origins.
📸Tom Berry

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Nedrow, NY — Faithkeeper Michael Kanatakeron Mitchell is known as one of the great builders in lacrosse history and is the first of three 2026 recipients of the Alfie Jacques Ambassador Award.

Coming from a lacrosse stick-making family, the soft-spoken leader has spent his life serving the game of lacrosse with a clarity of purpose that reflects the deepest intent of the Creator’s Game.

Within the Mohawk Community of Akwesasne, he has served as Grand Chief of the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne. At the University level, he was the co-founder of the North American Indian Traveling College, along with elder Ernest Benedict. Mitchell also established the Akwesasne Lacrosse Hall of Fame.

Mitchell has consistently reminded audiences—both Indigenous and non-Indigenous—that lacrosse did not originate as a sport, but as a medicine and a means of strengthening nations. Mitchell has been associated with the Haudenosaunee Nationals program as a long time board member and has guided players, from grassroots youth programs to elite senior level competition.

“Mike Mitchell has devoted his life to supporting Indigenous rights and honoring the deeper meaning of the medicine game,” said Sid Jamieson, former head coach at Bucknell University. “He is the founder of the Traveling College, which educates people regarding the history, culture and ways of Haudenosaunee people from a Haudenosaunee person. His leadership in the Mohawk community is demonstrated by integrity throughout service.”

With help from the Traveling College staff, he published two books on lacrosse. Tewaaraton - Lacrosse, and Teiontsikwaeks - Lacrosse; The Creators Game. His thirty years as a First Nation representative to Lacrosse Canada, the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame and the Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame have been recognized with Canada’s highest individual lacrosse honor, “the Lester B. Parson Award.”

The 2026 ceremony will be held in Syracuse, New York, on September 11.

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