MOSES LAKE - Dr. Clifford Morgan has spent the last 33 years caring for people's smiles in the Moses Lake area, but the dentist says it's time for him to start caring for his own.

Morgan said he is retiring from the dental business, and will be heading south this winter in search of warmer weather. If a little traveling doesn't put a permanent smile on his face, he said, he doesn't know what will.

"It's going to be hard to say goodbye, I've had a lot of wonderful patients over the years," he said. "But it's time to retire."

Morgan's first day of retirement was Nov. 1. He is handing his practice over to Dr. Ron McHargue, who recently bought the building it was located in.

The practice, which is located at Division Street and Sixth Avenue, will be renamed Division Street Dental.

Morgan spent a lot of his childhood in Moses Lake, and he didn't have to think twice when it came time to decide where he wanted to practice dentistry.

"I've always considered Moses Lake home," he said. "And I was always interested in helping people here."

Morgan's father moved the family to Moses Lake from Walla Walla when he was a kid, in order to help with the startup of an Ephrata bowling ball manufacturer. The family moved to Texas when the company relocated, and Morgan didn't return until he had finished dental school.

Morgan began his career in Moses Lake at the Ivy Street Clinic, but he wasn't happy with the clinic's location. He built the Division Street clinic in 1985, and said business began to pick up.

"I liked the visibility and we've done well through the years," said Morgan.

Morgan said making the decision to retire wasn't easy. He said he will miss his patients, since some of them have been with him since the clinic first opened.

"But everything pointed to retirement," he said. "This is my chance to say thanks you to the people of Moses Lake for their support, but it's time to pass the torch."

Morgan said he is confident McHargue will help the practice continue to be successful.

"We started talking, and we clicked," he said. "We come from the same background, and I know he'll be effective."

McHargue grew up in Moses Lake, and spent his childhood helping out at his father's engine repair shop. He said he became interested in science while at Big Bend Community College.

"It seems odd to go from mechanics to dentistry, but I liked working with my hands and fixing problems," he said. "I found dentistry and decided to go for that."

McHargue went on to Washington State University for his bachelor's degree. He then attended dental school at the University of Washington, where he participated in a program geared to bring dentists back to the Eastern side of the state.

McHargue spent his last year of dental school at the community health center in Moses Lake, and met Morgan when he went looking for practice opportunities. McHargue said he wasn't expecting the timing to be so perfect, and was happy he found a place to practice at.

He said he plans on being in Moses Lake for the long run.

"Dr. Morgan has been practicing for 30-some odd years, and I hope to be here for another 30," McHargue said.

Morgan said he is looking forward to retirement, and the chance to get back into his hobbies. He said one of the reasons he wanted to settle down in Moses Lake was because he loved being in an area where winter sports was possible.

However, he said he couldn't go skiing as often as he would have liked because he couldn't risk an injury.

"A broken leg or an arm could be a disaster for your practice," Morgan said. "So I had to give up winter sports for a while."

Morgan said skiing will have to wait until next winter because he and his wife have plans to travel south this January. His wife, Kay, retired from the real estate industry in Moses Lake about three years ago, he said.

The couple will spend a few months in warmer weather before heading back to Moses Lake.

"We're staying in Moses Lake, but we'll be coming and going," he said. "We love it here, and it's where our friends and family are."