Half-century set in stone for Gordon
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MAY 6, 2018, will be a date cast in stone as Thurso sculptor Gordon Fraser chalks up his half-century with John Hood and Sons.
Gordon is just days away from having done 50 years of continuous employment with the Thurso branch of the Wick-based firm – a rarity given many in the workplace are often on the move.
Gordon has seen all the changes in the industry – from the position of apprentice worker when he started to the post of company director which he holds today.
He said: “I left school at 15 years old and I started my working life as a message boy for a butcher’s shop where I was paid £3 a week.
“Then the chance to begin an apprenticeship with John Hood and Sons came up and they were offering a pound more.
“Of course the means by which to do the job were very basic compared to the technology we have today.
“Back then, to do a headstone by hand would involve the use of a hammer and a chisel and, depending on what job it was, could take up to three days to complete.
“These days we have a full inscription machine – a grit blaster – and the job is completed on the same day.
“In the hammer-and-chisel days, work could be a bit dicey as the occasional small piece of stone could come flying in your direction. Let’s just say I’ve had a few in the eye over the years. Thankfully, we work with full facial masks these days.
“What has kept me in the job for so long is that I’ve been fortunate to be working alongside a good workforce over the years. Plus you get time away from the office tending to headstones in various cemeteries throughout Caithness, the west and the south.”
Having racked up 50 years, will Gordon be tempted to call it a day and retire?
Not yet.
He said: “I’ve two more years before I’m up for retirement. I’ll probably take it then as come 2020, the firm itself will be 200 years old having started in 1820. That will be a nice figure to bow out on.”
