Carbon County's administrator Randall Smith is retiring.

During the county commissioners' meeting on Thursday, the board voted to accept Smith's retirement, effective Dec. 31. In addition to being the county administrator, Smith served as the chief clerk and human services coordinator."My career has been over 36 years 22 in health care and over 13 years at the county," Smith said of his upcoming retirement. "My spouse Gail recently retired as a school teacher and she's making retirement look so, so good. I'm at a time in my life that I'm looking to retire and slow down and enjoy the good life."He noted that he will remain involved in the many organizations that he currently participates in and thinks that he and his wife will start doing more volunteer work in their spare time.Commissioner William O'Gurek, chairman, spoke volumes of the service Smith has provided the county with over the last 13 years."I have been here eight years and I can tell you that the service that Randy Smith has provided for this county has been, in my opinion, exemplary," O'Gurek said. "He has been a great county administrator, taking care of things a lot of times that the three of us don't think about. Randy, we really appreciate all that you have done for this county and the work you've done for me and the board of commissioners. I think you did a fantastic job. Thank you for your service."Smith, a Jim Thorpe native, was hired as the county administrator on Aug. 17, 1998 to replace former administrator Mortimer Smedley.Prior to that, he was employed by Gnaden Huetten Hospital, serving as director of social services from 1975 to 1979; as the hospital's director of mental health services from 1979 to 1993; as the interim coordinator of continuous quality improvement at the hospital and its nursing home from 1993 to 1997; and as the nursing home's administrator from 1997 to 1998.