CEO
Mohonk Mountain House
“I am the least important person at Mohonk,” says CEO Tom Smiley, who would rather celebrate the cooks, housekeepers, and grounds people—not to mention all the other staff from hiking guides to waiters that make the 155-plus-year-old resort the stuff of dreams. Despite his humility, Smiley, who holds an MBA from SUNY New Paltz and has trained as an industrial engineer, co-leads Mohonk with his cousin Eric Gullickson ’00. He has left his mark at the resort thanks to a 21-year tenure at Mohonk, during which he has held several positions from chief engineer to director of properties. In 2018, when his uncle Bert Smiley retired, Smiley took over the leadership of Mohonk’s back-of-the-house operations. “I handle the aspects of the resort that guests don’t see, essential foundational departments such as finance and HR,” explains Smiley. Raised in Montana, Smiley fondly remembers his first visit to Mohonk in 1985 at the age of ten. “I recall running wild and free in the evening on the lawn with other children—there was a freedom and joy to it. Though I had arrived at the resort without friends, by the end of the week I had a wealth of them—there was a sense of belonging.” That’s one of the types of experiences Tom wants for Mohonk’s guests, many of whom return annually.
“Recently, one guest shared her fond memories of feeding the fish as a child here,” Smiley says when discussing the value of the nostalgic, traditional activities that the resort continues to offer. Now a grandmother, that same guest has returned year after year, first with her son and now with her grandchildren so they, too, could feed the fish— or take part in Mohonk’s famous rock scramble hikes, among other classic adventures. “Ultimately our goal is to get people outdoors. The nature here provides clarity—it’s our gift to the guests.”
Special honors and memberships: Chair, Town of Marbletown Zoning Board of Appeals; Chair, SUNY New Paltz School of Business Advisory Council; Chair, Mohonk Preserve Facilities Committee.
