In tribute: Longtime dentist was always on the move

What do you get with a man who loves to live life and doesn't know how to sit still?

You get Dr. Maurice Waters - a well-traveled man with an instrument-rated pilot's license, a two-time champion of a major golf tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada, and an avid quail hunter.

The longtime Clovis dentist died on Aug. 1 at age 97.

Waters' youngest son, Jack Waters, said from the time he was in sixth grade all the way through college, he and his dad and his older brother, Mark, would walk the giant loop around Colonial Parkway together.

"He always had activities, whether it was dancing or golfing; he was always doing something," said Mark Waters.

"He was always smiling and laughing. He would not sit still," said his daughter, Sally Waters. "He always wanted to be doing something and having fun. They (Maurice and their mother, Jean) played bridge, and they had parties at Colonial Park that they would dress up and go to. He took us to the lake every weekend after Sunday school when we were little."

"We'd all take a break from (water) skiing, and he'd keep going. He'd be pulling everybody and their friend with the boat all day long," oldest daughter, Nancy Skaggs, added with a laugh. "When we were little kids, we would all six of us get on our bicycles to go get ice cream. We were always doing something together."

"Dad took us to Ruidoso to learn how to snow ski, so we all learned all the sports," added Sally. "Some better than others."

She laughed. "Dad was always all about pursuing new things."

Mark said his parents went out dancing together until they were 90 years old. He said their father flew his airplanes and water skied until he was 80, adding that Maurice would often water ski with one foot holding onto the rope.

Mark recalled when his father was in his 70s, he went quail hunting with a friend, and the friend watched Maurice take off chasing a quail, effortlessly leaping over fences. He said the friend's father just happened to be the one who tested people to renew their pilot's license.

"When Dad went in, he told him, 'I'd do the physical test on you, but clearly, I don't need to,'" Mark recalled with a chuckle.

All four of Waters' children said something that distinctly stands out to them about their father and his 97 years of life was that he was one of their best friends.

"They wanted to be with us," Jack said of his parents when they were growing up.

"Mostly, it was at the dinner table," said Mark in regard to the family's playfulness and close rapport. "We would all be busy during the day, but dinner was family time. We all lived 100 miles an hour, but when it came to dinner, it was time to set everything aside and just be with your family."

Mark said they always knew when it was time to come home, because their dad would walk outside and whistle loudly.

Waters' children said they all stayed close as family and in regard to career. Mark and Sally became dentists and Jack became a chiropractor. Mark's two children are also dentists.

Mark said his dad's long-time administrative assistant, Earlene, decided to retire and when he asked her jokingly at her retirement dinner if she'd be at work tomorrow, she told Waters, "No, I'm retired, and so are you."

So, well into his 80s, Waters reluctantly retired from his 63-year dentistry practice, said Mark, but he didn't stop moving. He said his dad would stop by the practice sometimes to sit and visit with patients, and on occasion, Mark would see truck headlights appear at his house at night.

"Sometimes, he would call, but sometimes he would just creep along in his truck outside. He didn't want to bother me, but he wanted to come in and say hi," said Mark with a smile.

Waters had his energy and vibrancy right to the end, according to his children.

"We would always go and walk, and even when it got harder for him to drive, he'd go to Wal-Mart at 10 o' clock at night and walk," said Nancy with a laugh.

"One time, we went out in a foot of snow to play golf, because we were tired of being in the house," added Jack. "We'd dig out some snow, then play that hole, so it took a little while."

"He never stopped. He was all over the place," said Jack with a smile.

And more than anything, said Nancy, "he loved his kids; he loved his grandkids, and he loved his great grandkids."