WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. - Frank Cenicola is a pint-sized business man.
At just 11, he spends two hours per day in his garage turning hunks of wood into beautiful handmade pens.
“I don’t use any of these,” he joked as he loaded a small wooden block on his lathe for turning. “I’m too scared to lose them.”
The fifth-grader started a business in February called Frank’s Pens. He made each by hand and sells them for $15. For every pen sold, he donates $5 to local charitable organizations.
He started by donating to the Wounded Warrior Foundation and will begin giving to Post 9/11 Veterans non-profit in April.
“I would just feel better as a person, instead of keeping it all, giving some back to people who helped us,” he said.
Frank learned how to work with wood from his dad, Scott. The two went to a convention three years ago and it sparked Frank’s interest in the craft. He decided to donate to military efforts because of his grandfather, also named Frank, who served in Korea from 1955 to 1957 as a member of the U.S. Army.
“I’m very proud of him,” the grandfather said.
The two thumbed through photos of Frank while serving in war. It prompted many questions from the younger Frank.
“I felt like I wanted to give back,” he said.
The pens are available through Frank’s Facebook page. He made 76 pens in his first month of business and hopes to continue to grow in order to keep donations headed to veterans.
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