The Very Rev. Archimandrite Flor was born Vassily Vanko on December 9, 1926 in the village of Shemetkovtsi in Czechoslovakia. He joined the monastery at Ladomirova at a young age. With the coming of the communists in 1944, he was evacuated together with the brotherhood through Bratislava, Berlin and Geneva. He arrived as a novice to Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville New York in 1946. He was tonsured a rassaphore monk together with his close friend the novice Vassily Skurla (the future First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad) on March 28, 1947. They received the names Flor and Laurus, in honor of the martyr brothers. The next day, on the feast of the Laudation of the Most Holy Theotokos, they were tonsured readers and subdeacons. On the first week of Great Lent in 1948, they both were tonsured stavrophore monks together with Rassaphore Monk Alypy Gamanovich (now Archbishop of Chicago). Fr. Flor was ordained a hierodeacon on September 11, 1950 on the feast of St. John the Baptist. He was ordained a hieromonk on June 28, 1954. All his tonsures and ordinations were performed by the abbot of the monastery Archbishop Vitaly (Maximenko) of blessed memory. He was raised to the rank of abbot/igumen in 1967 and archimandrite in 1996. In 2007 for his many years of service to the Church, he was given the high honor of wearing 2 pectoral crosses, but, in keeping with his humility, he never wore them. Fr. Flor selflessly kept his difficult monastic obediences as the monastery electrician and handyman. He could always be found in the fields or the cemetery driving the heavy farm equipment. He would also always be found at the church services which he zealously attended. Summer boys and seminarians loved working with him. He was a man of great humility and always shunned the spotlight. Although he was very modest his presence was great. Archimandrite Flor fell asleep in the Lord on September 4, around 5am,  2012. May God grant him eternal life in his kingdom.