The people who knew him and worked with him agree, he had a heart of gold, loved Greene County and had a big impact on the betterment of the entire county.

Greene County Board of Commissioners Board of Commissioners President Bart Beard, of Linton, who serves District 3, says he lost a good friend with the death of Larry Hasler.

"Larry Hasler was a great asset to our community. He spent most of his life serving the people of Greene County in many aspects of education and politics. He spent most of his life serving others and working to make Greene County better. He was a good friend and will truly be missed," Beard said in a telephone call from Cancun, Mexico where he is vacationing over spring break.

Greene County District 1 Commissioners Kathy Crouch said Hasler stood up to the battle he faced.

"I am shocked just as many of us are that Larry has passed. After seeing him at (last ) Tuesday's Commissioner's meeting, I believed that he was standing up to his battle. I have seen the ravages of cancer many times over, and personally believe that Larry may have had some luck and prayer on his side...he did not suffer," Crouch commented. "He will be missed by many. My prayers are with Karon and family."

Greene County Democat Party Chairman Jeff Lehman called a "good Democrat" who often volunteered for party jobs --like driving the truck that pulled the Democrat Party float in area parades.

Lehman said the process of finding a replacement to finish Hasler's term -- which expires Dec. 31 -- will begin a few weeks. A party caucus will be scheduled and precinct committeemen will vote for an individual to fill his term.

Another good friend and party backer, Mike Hennette, of Linton, called Hasler a "caring person", who was an avid supporter of the Democrat Party.

"He cared about his fellow man and he cared about sports in general. Larry was very active in the Elks and was over the golf league for a number of years," Mike said.

Mike worked for Hasler for about a year-and-half when he served as county highway superintendent.

"Larry always thought things out. He had a very quiet wisdom about him and whenever he told you want he wanted to do, he knew in his mind that was what he wanted to do and that was how he wanted to carry it out," Hennette said. "He was just always out there at the job sites and he was very interested in it. He was that way with everything he did."

Hennette continued, "He was a loyal supporter of the party. He was at all of the meetings and you could always depend on Larry. He was unified with the party and I appreciated that. That whole family is just a wonderful family."

Commissioner's attorney Marilyn Hartman said, "It's just a very sad situation for his family. I felt Larry was extremely dedicated in his job (as commissioner). I don't know that he ever missed a meeting for any reason -- personal or whatever -- until he was sick recently. He took his responsibilities very seriously. I always felt he tried to keep the public interest of everybody in the decisions he made." she explained. "He would not put himself in front as the spokesman. He would look at the situation and try to make a decision. He was just a quiet, thoughtful individual who did his job and made tried to make the best decision that he could."