My history - the story of our visionary & founder, Aylin Ozgener

My name is Aylin (meaning “one who belongs to the moon” and pronounced “I-Lin” or “I-Lynn”) Ozgener and I was born “first generation American” in Nashville, Tennessee on April 6th, 1972. My parents were born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey, with my father’s background being Armenian and my mother’s Turkish. They moved to New York with scholarships where my father received his master’s degree in mechanical engineering at Columbia University, and my mother received her masters at Bank Street College of Education and later her PhD at Peabody College of Education at Vanderbilt. 

I feel I need to be as truthful and authentic about my history as possible. I am about to share details of my life’s experiences, including my traumas and my triumphs. 

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My Childhood

My childhood was not an easy one in that I had a family member who bullied me often growing up and it was difficult to bear. My father loved me dearly but he had his own shadows to face at the time.  He had a temper and would break things, which was scary to me (he broke out of this later in his life when he discovered yoga and meditation and was a wonderful soul). I was a shy girl, drawn to books, the outdoors and to animals (I loved to feed and take care of strays).  I was an explorer and an adventurer, constantly using both music and my imagination to daydream, venture outdoors and escape my reality. I felt “odd” and “out of place” for many years growing up- a girl born from immigrant parents trying to fit in to a small country town (which Nashville was at the time) with deep southern roots. 

I was seven years old when I got my first “save the world” activation. We were on a family cruise when we stopped at an island in the Caribbean and I had an experience on the beach. A boy with ribs sticking out, a boy clearly starving to death approached me and asked me for the rest of my sandwich. I remember how sad I was that I had eaten more than half of it by the time he found me. My heart broke hard for the first time and I have never forgotten that day.  It forged a secret determination in me, an awakening of my spirit…An activation…

The most joyful memories of my childhood were of us traveling every summer, often to New York and to Istanbul to visit my relatives.  From getting lost in the scents of my grandmother’s rose garden in Istanbul to riding motorcycles in Spain to milking cows in a small countryside in Austria, I found mirth, wonder and joy. I also loved music, visiting museums and going to concerts and shows of all kinds (music concerts, Broadway shows/musicals, operas, ballets). I was fortunate to have parents who were cultured and exposed us to many experiences in the world. I am so grateful for them.

The middle school I attended was where “mean girls” thrived. If you weren’t a very specific type of girl who had a specific background you were bullied, and, I was one of those bullied. My carpool had three mean girls in it so I had to deal with that and it was stifling, where I felt I couldn't use my voice because no matter what I said, it didn’t matter. I finally convinced my dad to allow me to switch to another school in 10th grade and then I started to thrive. I threw myself in leadership positions, becoming secretary of student council , treasurer of my class, number one on the tennis team, re-writing the school’s constitution, straight A’s in the honors program, making daily announcements, etc…In college I was president of my sorority pledge class and then the social director of my sorority. I was finally thriving. But, no matter what I did and what I accomplished, it was never satisfying to me. I had the “I am not worthy” and “I am not enough” complex, which I carried with me for much of my life. 

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Post Grad Years

I landed a job in New Jersey immediately after college, which I didn’t like, so when my dad called me a few months later to tell me he was starting a cigar company and needed me to work for him, I said yes. I was simply given a tattered customer list (my dad was in the pipe business before and had just started a humidor business) so I started calling customers to introduce myself and quickly had a rapport going with them, taking care of customer service.

I noticed the accounts receivables were over 10% so I tackled those to bring them down to almost 0%. I found and hired our CFO, and he is still CFO of a cigar company today. I began a customer service department, training people and making sure the customers were taken care of. I realized that I was one of the only employees selling products so I put together our first independent national sales force team. We hit a major roadblock though, with a batch of cigars that weren’t burning properly and had to recall 400,000 of them.

This was a huge hit and almost took us out of business. Fortunately, my brother stepped in and found a different manufacturer to start a new line of cigars for us. I organized a marketing plan with our sales force and we launched our first in store marketing campaign and it was a big hit. Our cigar brand gained popularity and it was all up from that point on. 

One of my inspirational memories was during a time when the TAA (Tobacconist Association of America), a organization led by a group of lead tobacconists, with memberships from the top cigar/pipe companies (manufacturers and distributors) was in a “flux.” This was towards the earlier days of technology and change had not taken place from the old systems to new systems. Cigar companies were displeased and vocally made it clear they would be quitting the organization and not attending the convention the following year. I knew this would be catastrophic for the industry so I orchestrated a plan of action.

I gathered all the heads of the cigar/pipe companies together in a conference room to discuss and collaborate on all matters. I gathered data and coordinated a meeting between the heads of these companies and the lead tobacconists who served on the board as officers. I facilitated and moderated communication between the two groups. I had to deliver the news that the manufacturers wanted to convey in a diplomatic fashion that would land gently enough with the tobacconists to allow for negotiation.

I was able to accomplish this, and the changes were made that needed to take place to re-establish unity between the two groups. This was an accomplishment I was instrumental in and I am grateful for the outcome. I truly enjoyed the years in which I was a part of the cigar industry. I learned much about business and met really wonderful people. I also greatly revere the wisdom of the ancient plant of tobacco. I watched it bring thousands of people together from all walks of life, bringing peace and prosperity. We sold this business in 2007. 

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My Relationship

Unfortunately, I was in a 12 year relationship with an abusive man who liked to torment me for many hours at a time, a man of unbelievable rage. His cruelty was unrelenting and I suffered so much that it is an indescribable miracle I am alive today.

I lived every minute in a chokehold of fear that took my breath away for many years. Because my body held so much trauma, I suffered a lot when I had my first pregnancy with my daughter. Through much pain with complications, I had to lay on my right side for countless hours in the hospital, where the epidural seeped out from my left side, and, with an emergency c-section, was cut open while feeling everything on my left side of my body, with my organs being taken out and pushed back in and I can’t describe the unbelievable pain and suffering I endured from this. I later found out my obgyn was called “the butcher” and that she was.

I remember I had a high fever and major infection on my left side and couldn’t manage to breastfeed my daughter. My husband at the time left me alone in the hospital and later yelled at me for forgetting to take my medications in my fevered state. 

I will not list the things he did over the years as they may trigger and upset many readers, but, I am an open book and can answer any questions in the right circumstances. I treat my body with great honor, gentleness and kindness. She is a seasoned warrior who has fought many battles and has come out stronger than ever. She is my hero, and I treat her with grace and respect. I revere every wrinkle I have because they are symbols of my courage, strength, fortitude and wisdom, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

There was a night (several years later) after much prayer when he started to go into one of his raging fits, and I literally felt a “click” in my heart and all my fear dissipated. I was set free from that moment on. Angels helped me with many miracles in how to divorce him safely, and they gave me evidence and help in order to get a divorce completed (in 2011) within nine months. 

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Mission Trips

I was led to join several mission trips to Peru and Guatemala and loved visiting orphanages, holding babies and playing with the kids. I was asked to give testimonies in front of crowds and I did although I was terrified to stand in front of audiences at the time.

I took this as a sign God was having fun with me by gently encouraging me to share a bit of my story to help others. It worked. Many people came to me for hugs, to cry and be held. I helped them realize they were not alone in their suffering. It started to become clear to me that there would be many ways for me to help others. I joined boards of charitable organizations and ended up on the cover of a magazine, winning awards for my dedicated work. 

My body was really starting to break down. I was getting severe migraines frequently and they were debilitating. I also had massive PTSD and intestinal issues. My body was knocking loudly at my door that she could not continue without help (if you haven’t read “The Body Keeps the Score”, I highly recommend it). I started to explore ways of healing myself and my body.

I joined “women’s healing” groups and dove deep. I attended ceremonies and released…I read books, practiced brain-training modalities and meditations, met with therapists, coaches, went on several healing/wellness retreats and made appointments to experience different healing modalities.

I went “all-in” full-time with healing myself because if I didn’t, I could not survive. I spent years practicing intensive healing work and have not had any migraines, intestinal issues or any physical issues for several years now.

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A New Phase

Please see “THE ORIGIN OF BASK” for where my story was always meant to go…