By IANS,
New York : A Virginia man and his daughter who had gone to Mumbai as part of a meditation trip have been killed in the terror attack, the meditation group which organised the programme said. Five other members of the group were injured.
The US State Department has confirmed the deaths of Virginia residents Alan Scherr, 58, and his daughter, Naomi, 13.
The Synchronicity Foundation, the meditation group which organised the programme, said in a posting on its website: “It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of two of our loved community members Alan and Naomi Scherr who were tragically killed in the recent events at the Oberoi in Mumbai.”
Alan and his daughter lived at the Synchronicity monastery near Wintergreen resort in Nelson County, Virginia. The spiritual group had sent 25 people, including 16 Americans, four Canadians and five Australians as part of the meditation trip to India.
They were staying at the Oberoi Trident. The father-daughter duo was reported missing after the terrorists attacked the hotel.
The Synchronicity Foundation said Alan Scherr was a passionate Vedic astrologer and meditation teacher. He inspired many people to begin a journey of self-awareness and meditation, it said.
“He was committed to making a positive difference in the world and devoted himself to the community he lived in,” the foundation said in its posting on the web. The foundation has also set up a site to pay tribute to Alan and Naomi.
Other members of the foundation were also injured or killed. Prominent among them was Montreal-based actor Michael Rudder, who was shot when terrorists stormed one of the hotels in Mumbai. Rudder underwent surgery in an intensive care unit after three gunshot wounds.
The foundation earlier said two of its American and two Canadian participants received gunshot wounds. “One remains in intensive care with three bullet wounds but is conscious and believed to be out of danger,” it said in a posting Thursday.
“Two others are recovering after surgery and the fourth has been released having been treated for a flesh wound,” the statement said.