Agnes "Sweets" Jacobs was born and raised in Akwesasne. Her parents taught her to work for what she wanted and this learning experience contributed to her love of the Akwesasne community.
Her clan is Turtle; Mohawk name is "Kia ko ho ron kwas". Her father Jerry King was an ironworker and an avid fisherman; while her mom Angie worked in administration, is an excellent cook and homemaker. Sweets is one of eight children. In 1980, she married Casey Jacobs and made their home on family land in Frogtown; where they raised four children: Casey Jr., Kateri, Leslie and Cyndi.
In 1989, she obtained a Small Business Certificate and opened a fast food eatery named "End of the Trail". She relied on local residents to sustain her restaurant and learned firsthand how hard you must work to maintain a small business.
Sweets completed a Registered Practical Nursing Program offered by Iohahiio through St. Lawrence College and graduated top of her class with honors in 1992. She then went to work for First Environment/ SUNY Albany under Mohawk midwife and women’s health advocate Katsi Cook; as well as Dr. Lawrence Schell, Dr. Joan Newman and Dr. Mia Gallo.
For 14 years, Sweets served as the Senior Support Research Specialist and visited community members to gather data and blood draws to assess the effects of PCB’s on our youth, women, men and grandparents. During this time, she realized that toxicants were leading community members to lose a part of their upbringing, cultural involvement and food security.
In 2007, Sweets was hired by the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne as a Diabetes Prevention Worker/Community Health Representative; where she was instrumental in initiating "Tetewatská:hon", the Green Food Box Program. She also helped establish community kitchens and programming; raised bed gardens; and as a Certified Food Educator she taught harvesting and canning in local schools, with her Food Security Initiatives featured in a publication produced by Health Canada.
Her most recent employment began in 2014 with the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe as the Home and Community Based Services, Waiver Supervisor; where she supervised a team comprised of habilitation aides, a fleet manager and a woodshop supervisor. She coordinated and provided daily scheduling for the operation of Disabilities Services and daily programming for community members who reside at the Tribe’s Individual Residential Alternatives (IRA) facilities and Sweet Flag Estate.
- Tribal Sub-Chief July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2020