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There is an apt irony that the brothers who built the main structure at Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY, were named Smiley—Albert and Alfred.
That’s because in the 150 years since the resort hotel first arose on the shores of Lake Mohonk, it has generated hundreds of thousands of smiles from its satisfied guests, including five American presidents (Teddy Roosevelt, Taft, Hayes, Arthur, and Clinton), and famous industrialists, including John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie.
Condé Nast Traveler named Mohonk Mountain House the “Number One Resort Spa” in the U.S., and Travel + Leisure ranked it as the sixth-best spa hotel in the world—both in 2013.
The resort features a wide variety of activities and amenities, including hiking, climbing, horseback riding, golf, tennis, and lawn bowling.
For aquatic types, there is swimming, canoeing, kayaking, rowing, and even fishing. In the winter, the resort offers ice skating, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and curling.
Guests in 1938 enjoy skating on Lake Mohonk.
The smiling Mohonk employee in the photo above works long days helping boaters with their equipment, but clearly loves being there almost as much as the guests.
Whether at Mohonk Mountain House in New York or walking the streets of Smiley, Texas—which according to Wikipedia has two cafes, no gas stations, a Wells Fargo bank, and a single traffic light—professional WBIS photographers span the globe in search of radiant, life-affirming smiles. You can browse an inspiring gallery of more than 800 WBIS photos here.
Daily on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, the We Believe in Smiles™ campaign posts a fresh portrait of an individual (or individuals) who reminds us all of the magic of a healthy smile. DOCS Education is proud to be the founding sponsor of WBIS, whose message is simple: No politics. No marketing. No B.S.
JUST SMILES
Photography by Avital portrait first posted online in July 2019. ©2019 We Believe in Smiles.™ All rights reserved. To inquire about purchasing or leasing a photo canvass of this or any other WBIS photograph for your office or home, phone 844-228-4825.
