MAST Travel Network recently elected new officers and board members.

The board elected Joe Virgilio of Travel Center Inc. in Buffalo Grove, Ill., to serve a one-year term as chairman and CEO.

Elected as co-vice chairs were Aggie Lewis, of Aggie’s Travel in Oak Lawn, Ill., and Jeni Chaffer of Journeys Travel in Bourbonnais, Ill.

Scot Kunkel of Compass Travel in DeKalb, Ill., was elected treasurer, while Cindy Brown of Oui Travel in Batavia, Ill., will serve as secretary.

Also serving on the board are Rick South of The Travel Center Ltd., in Des Moines, Iowa, Darrellynn Hanes of Worldwide Traveler in McHenry, Ill., Jenny Cagle of Elm Grove Travel in Elm Grove, Wis., and Kelly Ortiz of Guru Travel in Elgin, Ill.

Headquartered in suburban Chicago, MAST is a travel agency network with over 200 agency members throughout North America, primarily in the Midwest.

The MAST board traditionally meets six times a year, but during the pandemic met bi-weekly in the early months of the crisis and then monthly.

“I always look forward to working with the first-time board members who bring fresh perspectives and new ideas,” said John Werner, MAST president and COO. “All board members are enthusiastic and eager to serve their colleagues and peers in the membership.”

At MAST’s recent Spring Owners Meeting for agency owners only, two-member panels discussed a range of topics, from the restart of travel and which destinations are selling well to client conversations about vaccines and testing requirements.

Members also discussed their hiring plans and if they are bringing back furloughed employees. A second panel discussed lessons learned in the past 16 months, ways they have changed their business practices and how relationships with suppliers have changed.

Some members said they felt that “many supplier relationships are broken, and they are starting over building new relationships,” according to a press release.

The MAST release said members feel some suppliers “were true partners during the crisis while many suppliers performed poorly. MAST agency owners said they are looking forward and can no longer dwell on the past.”

Panelists also said they try to always handle booking transactions online. “As the industry rebuilds and companies re-staff their sales departments and call centers, many with new hires, travel advisors are less confident in what they are told over the phone and are finding themselves double and triple checking information, causing delays in service to their clients,” the MAST release concluded.

MAST outlined its meetings and events for the rest of 2021 into 2022.

Summer workshops will be held in nine locations across the Midwest on Aug. 3, 4, 5, 11, 12, 17,18,19 and 26.

The Owners Summit is scheduled for Sept. 28 at Riverway Auditorium in Rosemont, Ill. The all-day meeting for agency owners only will focus on agency operations, staffing and hiring, customer service, supplier relations and industry matters.

The All-Star Trip, which will recognize top sales and most improved agencies from 2019, will be held Oct. 17-21 at TRS Coral Resort in Playa Mujeres, Mexico.

The MAST Sales Sensation is set for Nov. 16 at the Drury Lane Theatre and Conference Center in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill. The seminars and trade show are followed by an evening dinner program that is open to all MAST travel advisors, agency owners, independent contractors and suppliers.

The 2022 Annual MAST Conference is scheduled for April 27-May 1 at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa in Bonita Springs, Fla. It will feature keynote speakers, education tracks, private business appointments and more.