Shayla
Gerling

The travel bug took its first bite out of me when I took a position as a Hotel Sourcing Coordinator at TG Worldwide in Denver, CO. I had recently left my hometown of East Moline IL, still quite young but seeking something more adventurous than detasseling corn in the heat of the Midwest summer on break from college. My Aunt and Uncle who lived in Denver had offered for me to come stay with them for a bit so I jumped at the opportunity to ski on the weekends and hike year round. My job at TG Worldwide was great and I loved it! Being just twenty, I was the youngest of all my colleagues, but I quickly gained the trust of those I reported to as my Midwest work ethic really shined from all those summers in the corn fields. Unfortunately, less than a year after my dream job became a reality it ended abruptly with the tragic and never to be forgetten September 11, 2001 terrorism attack on our Nation. I prefer to just hit the fast forward button on this time of transition and speak about the fortunes that came my way in the months to come. I had made some great contacts in the travel and tourism industry during my short time in the industry I fell in love with. One of those contacts turned friend convinced me to take yet another leap of faith and relocate to Key Largo, FL in the winter of 2002. My parents were not too sure of this drastic move to an unknown part of the Country, at least for us, but my gut told me to go so I did. I took a job at Ocean Reef Club which turned out to be the best move of my life. I accepted a job in the membership office where I worked with the members of this prestigious private club which became my new dream job. My “friend” had became my boyfriend and was actually my Sales Manager from my short time at TG. Ok I let the cat out of the bag... By the end of the year in 2002 Mark had accepted a job with one of his corporate clients and off we moved to Austin, TX. My dream job again was gone and I found myself now in Texas wondering what was to come now. Mark and I had a mutual friend in the professional racing industry and we spent some time at different speedways as his guest. We met some amazing people from Drivers, owners, crew and various people associated with the “inside” of the sport. We learned a lot about the Motorsports industry in a relatively short amount of time and felt there just might be an opportunity right in front of me so I took my third leap of faith. Gerling Sports Travel was quickly created and I was the CEO. As scary as that was for me, a tried and true introvert I accepted the challenge. It was here where I worked in the downstairs office of our townhouse with our sweet dog Maggie by my side sourcing hotels for a few potential clients that braved to give me a chance. To shorten my story here, 20 years in the making I am blessed to still be working with some of these amazing clients who I now treasure as great friends. We moved back to Florida a few years later as we both missed the energy of the ocean and swaying palm trees that are now right out the back door of our home. My Travel Company has adapted to the ever changing landscape of our industry and morphed into so many new business ventures I still have to pinch myself. Gerling Travel has grown into a multi-million dollar a year thriving business with 5 staff members and several travel advisors working remote. In 2008 Mark joined the company and created a leisure division which has done amazing. We are now working in several professional sporting markets from NASCAR, INDY, IMSA, MLB, NFL, NBA and NHL. We have two children that have inherited our passion for travel and have already been to East Africa, Egypt, Europe, Greece and all over the Caribbean and USA. They are Brady who is 16 and Adia who is 13. I am living my dream now and will never forget those hot summer days in the corn fields of Illinois and the lessons that taught me about hard work. It does pay off!