Hooking by the Sea Retreats organizes customizable getaway packages which include lodging, meals and workshops. For entertainment, the packages can include things such as traditional rug hooking, storytelling and even an historical theme where Graham dresses up in a 1790s period costume as “Victoria.” Victoria also talks about what it was like living in a fishing village and how harsh the life was. She also does spinning with the vacationers. (Spinning is the process of creating yarn from fibers.)

Graham developed the idea for the business from through her experiences travelling with her husband, Floyd. They always enjoyed mingling with the locals and hearing their stories, so she wanted other people to have similar experiences.

Graham credits her success to staying true to who she is as a person. This includes continuing to be an active volunteer, despite the growth and success of her business. Staying true to herself also means running the business in the greenest fashion possible. As a tour operator, she feels an obligation to make people aware of their carbon footprint. “It’s the way to go,” she says.

Some of her green initiatives include recycling coffee cans and reusing them for the rug hooking kits. Her husband also makes rug hooking hooks out of recycled spindles from old homes. Graham is also a firm believer in the buy local movement. All of the meals are sourced from local ingredients and she hires locals to round out the experience, whether it’s hiring a singer or storyteller for some of the events in her packages.

She also credits the CBDC for its support, whether it’s someone to bounce ideas off of or for helping her with her bookkeeping.“There wasn’t anything they wouldn’t do for me,” says Graham, who especially appreciated the support given the remote nature of where she lives. Brier Island is a four-hour drive away from Halifax and it takes two ferries to get to the tiny island.

Prior to running the business, Graham was a housewife and also had a stint working at a fish plant. But it’s really no surprise she ended up choosing this as her career. She’s full of energy and is the definition of the word friendly. “I really love people,” she says.