Longtime WBTV Weather Anchor Eric Thomas is putting down the clicker.

But, he’s not doing it right away.

Thomas announced that he is retiring from the station at the end of the year. After 33 years at the station, Thomas said, “this was a tough decision and took lots of soul searching between my wife and me. I’m not running away from anything; I’m running toward the other things still awaiting me! It’s impossible to explain in words how much WBTV and the Charlotte community have blessed my family!”

Thomas started at the station in 1988 and was the first certified meteorologist in WBTV’s history.