Al and Alice Cassner: A legacy of service to the community

NOTE: This is Part 3 of a series leading up to the Highland County Historical Society inducting five more members into its Hall of Fame on Aug. 17. This week, we profile the late Al and Alice Cassner.

By Steve Roush
HCP columnist

Ladies and gentlemen, Alvin Cassner and his wife, Alice, are known for bringing Rotary Forms Press, Inc. to Hillsboro in the late 1950s, but for the Cassners, service to the community was as much a way of life as attention to business.

And even though Mr. and Mrs. Cassner have both passed away, their contributions to the community continue to this very day – and will well into the future.

Alvin (1913-2002) started Rotary Forms Press in Michigan in 1952 and relocated the business to Hillsboro in 1957. At the time of his passing in October 2002 at the age of 88, he was founder and president of Rotary Forms Press, Inc. in Hillsboro, Unit Sets, Inc. in Wilmington, Computer Stock Forms, Inc. in Greenfield and Quality Computer Forms in Naples, Fla.

Alice (1914-2000) was a member of the Board of Directors for Rotary Forms and also on the Board of Directors for the Cassner Foundation. She worked as a volunteer at Highland District Hospital.

The Cassner Foundation, Inc., established by Alvin and Alice Cassner as a 501(c)(3) non-profit in 1962, is still giving to the community. In 2023 alone, over $200,000 was donated in scholarships and gifts to the community. Over the years, there have been generous donations to the Athletic Buildings at Hillsboro and McClain High Schools (A.B. Cassner Athletic Building at HHS and McClain Athletic Complex), the Highland District Hospital Foundation and the Highland County Society for Children and Adults; contributions to the local police and fire departments and Samaritan Outreach Services; and yearly scholarships granted to Highland County high school seniors. 

"The Cassner Foundation Scholarship" was established by Mr. and Mrs. Alvin B. Cassner, and in 2025, there were six $3,500 scholarships awarded, each renewable for up to four years. Alice Cassner was a great believer in higher education, and Wilmington College and Southern State Community College also benefited.

Both Alvin and Alice were active members of the Hillsboro First Presbyterian Church. They were members of the Snow Hill Country Club. They were members of the Highland County Chamber of Commerce.

Alvin was bestowed the honor of Business Forms Professional of the Year in 1985.

Alice was inducted into the Highland County Women's Hall of Fame in 1991. She was honored for her professional work at Rotary Forms as vice-president and for being "instrumental in donations to many educational and sports causes for young people."

Mrs. Cassner is also well known for Alice Cassner Field. In 1992, construction began on the girls' softball complex at Richard Shaffer Park in Hillsboro. Alice Cassner was a special benefactor. Her donation provided diamonds, lights, poles, equipment, bleachers, bleacher covers, grading of the fields, and an office and equipment room – "nearly everything that was needed to get started." In 1993, the grand opening of Cassner Field was held. Two more softball diamonds were added the next year. They are utilized by the High School team and also by the summer softball program. Today, a sign greets visitors, "Welcome to Alice Cassner Field, Home of the Lady Indians."

Alice Cassner passed away in November of 2000 at the age of 85.

Both Alvin and Alice Cassner were proud to call Hillsboro home and they were dedicated to giving back to the community and helping the youth of Highland County.

In addition to the Cassners, the 2025 Highland County Historical Society Hall of Fame inductees are Bill and Janet Butler, the late Mary Muntz, the late Dayne “Woop Woop” Puckett, and the late Virginia Bell Thompson Telfair, the granddaughter of C.S. Bell.

The recipients will be honored at an induction ceremony Sunday, Aug. 17 at 2 p.m. at the Presbyterian Church in Hillsboro, followed by a reception at Highland House directly across the street from the church. The public is cordially invited.

For more information on the society or the upcoming Hall of Fame ceremony, please call (937) 393-3392 or email the society at hchistoricalsociety@gmail.com.
 
Steve Roush is president of the Highland County Historical Society and served as chairman and vice chairman on the HCHS Board of Trustees for two terms, a board member of the Highland District Hospital Foundation, a vice president of an international media company and a columnist and contributing writer for The Highland County Press. He can be reached by email at roush_steve@msn.com.