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THEBACHA/FORT SMITH
As a retired person, Pauline Gordon had been looking for a part-time job to keep herself busy.

Fort Smith's Pauline Gordon, who plans to launch Raven Engravin' & Art next month, sits at an engraving machine. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

And the Fort Smith resident has found it – an engraving business.

"Actually, I just bought the business in the summer," she said. "I have the inventory now. I'm just getting set up. I haven't done any advertising or anything, because I need to get fully set up before then."

Gordon hopes to have the home-based, part-time business fully operational before the end of November.

The 59-year-old retired about five years ago from the GNWT where she was assistant deputy minister for 13 years with the Department of Education, Culture and Employment in Yellowknife.

"Because I retired, I didn't want to do anything that would take too much of my time," she said of her search for a part-time occupation.

Since retiring at 55, she volunteered in Yellowknife before moving to Fort Smith about four-and-a-half years ago, was a substitute teacher for a while, renovated her home in Fort Smith, and got into fish scale art and jewelry-making.

Then she met the former owner of the engraving business, which had been dormant for about five years, and she was convinced it was the right opportunity for her.

"I was looking to just fill my hours at my own pace," Gordon said. "I didn't want to get into a really big business type of thing."

There is more to an engraving business than many people may realize.

Aside from operating a complicated-looking engraving machine, Gordon will also be using her artistic sense to build trophies and plaques from supplies obtained from the former owner of the business.

"When you make trophies, you have a selection of things that you can put together," she explained. "So it's not just like cut and paste."

She can also engrave names and messages on things such as giftware, clocks, pendants and medals.

One of the first things Gordon needed for her new business was a name.

Her daughter – Janine Blake of Inuvik – suggested the name Raven Engravin' & Art, which is inspired by Raven Street on which Gordon lives.

Initially, she was hesitant about that name because there are other businesses in Fort Smith with the word 'raven' in their names, but eventually she came to like Raven Engravin' & Art.

"I said it a few times, and I thought that kind of sounds good," she said. "It comes off the tongue really easily."

Gordon has already done some engraving for herself and family members.

So far, she said she is enjoying it.

"It's quite therapeutic actually, because some of it is quite meticulous," she said. "After a while, I get right into it ... It just gets my mind away from life."

The 'art' part of her business's name involves fish scale art and jewelry made out of bison horn and moose antler.

Gordon was an educator in various roles for 32 years, starting as a teacher in her hometown of Aklavik in 1976 and later the superintendent for the school board in the Beaufort Delta before wrapping up her education career as an assistant deputy minister.

She said she decided to retire early and enjoy life.

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