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His Life

Obituary

March 8, 2016

     Gene Earl Floro, 80, of Topeka, died March 5, 2016. He was born

December 11, 1935, in Benton, Illinois, the son of Ernest and Yutha

(Pelhank) Floro.

     Mr. Floro grew up in Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and graduated from Southern

Illinois University – Carbondale. He served in the Unites States Navy in

public information, culminating with a special assignment to a Command

Information Bureau established to create nationwide publicity for the

Navy’s 50th Anniversary of Naval Aviation. He was responsible for media

relations, and did interviews with radio and television stations across the

country during a cross-country “race” involving vintage aircraft.

     Mr. Floro went into commercial broadcasting after leaving the Navy and

came to Topeka in 1964, working for WIBW-TV as a morning and late

afternoon on-air host of The Rush Hour and The Early News. He worked

for KSNT-TV a few years later as Creative Services manager. More

recently, he had been in the advertising field, owning Creative Works, an

advertising agency. He served on various boards over the years, including

Friends of the Zoo, The Topeka Advertising Club, and Topeka Festival

Singers.

     Mr. Floro was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Jack Floro; sister,

Patricia  Maehl; and long-time companion, Mike Printz.