Steve Casper honored with profession's 'Lifetime Achievement' award
Steve Casper accepts the OAR Vincent T. Aveni Lifetime Achievement Award for his distinguished service to the organization. He is joined by (from left) his wife, Meg, and daughter Lori Casper Corbin.
REALTOR Steve Casper of Cincinnati was honored as the 2016 recipient of the Ohio Association of REALTORS' Vincent T. Aveni Lifetime Achievement Award.
The presentation of the award was made at the Association's Board of Directors meeting during the 106th OAR Annual Convention, Sept. 19-21, in Cleveland. Casper is associated with Cutler Real Estate in Cincinnati.
The Vincent T. Aveni Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes OAR past presidents that provide exemplary service to the organization. Aveni served as president of the Association in 1980 and the award was created in his memory following his passing in 2006.
Casper, who served as OAR President in 1988, remains actively involved in the organization, serving as a member and chair of numerous organizational committees at the local, state and national level. He has previously served as Region #6 Vice President, representing Ohio and Michigan, for the National Association of REALTORS.
Casper, who joined OAR in 1974, has served the Association as a Director since 1986. Additionally he has chaired and served as a member of a variety of committees, including: Executive, Equal Opportunity & Cultural Diversity, Mediators Forum, Past Presidents, Professional Standards Forum, REALTORS Political Action Committee and Convention, among others. He has also led and been a member of a number of special task forces within the organization, including: 100th Anniversary, Agency, Non-Dues Revenue, Minimum Services for Listings, and a working group on OAR meeting structure. Casper is the originator of the idea of a joint Convention with the Ohio and Kentucky Association of REALTORS be held in Cincinnati in 2017.
Nationally, Casper has been a NAR director (1983, 1985-2016) and served and chaired a number of committees, including: DSA Selection, Multiple Listing Policy, Professional Standards, Legislative, Risk Management, Issues Mobilization, Diversity, and Executive, among others. A strong supporter of RPAC, he is recognized by NAR as a Sterling R Major Investor contributor. He was installed as a member of the NAR RPAC Hall of Fame in 2009.
Additionally, Casper is one of only six Ohioans to have received NAR's Distinguished Service Award.
At the local level, Casper is a RPAC Trustee and helped establish the Cincinnati Area Board of REALTORS RPAC Hall of Fame. Additionally, he served on the City of Covington (KY) and City of Wyoming (OH) Commissions and is a member of a number of civic organizations, including: Cincinnati Beard Barons and serving as vice president of his home owners association.
Casper holds the Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), Certified Real Estate Brokerage Manager (CRB) and Seller Representative Specialist (SRS) professional designations offered by NAR. He is co-founder of SRS, currently one of the fastest growing NAR designation offerings.
"Steve is a most deserving honoree of this prestigious award," said OAR President Sara Calo. "Throughout his career, Steve has provided unparalleled leadership and vision to the advancement of Ohio's real estate profession, as well as finding time to improve his community."
Past recipients of the Vincent T. Aveni Lifetime Achievement Award are: Vincent Aveni (2007 -- posthumously), Paul Everson (2008), Harley E. Rouda (2009), Owen Hall (2010), George Smith (2011), Steve Brown (2012), Barbara Lach (2013), Terry Hankner (2014), and John Lynch (2015).
The Ohio Association of REALTORS, with more than 30,000 members, is the largest professional trade association in Ohio.
