November 28, 2008 Father and daughter from Virginia killed in Mumbai attacks Play video

(NECN) - A man and his teenage daughter from a Virginia community that promotes meditation were killed in the attacks in Mumbai. Bobbie Garvey, a spokeswoman for the Synchronicity Foundation, says Alan Scherr, 58 and his daughter Naomi, 13 died in a café Wednesday night.

The Scherrs were among 25 foundation participants in a spiritual program in Mumbai. Four others on the mission were injured in the cafe attack in the luxury Oberoi hotel, Garvey said, including two women from Tennessee.

Garvey identified the Synchronicity injured as Helen Connolly of Toronto, who was grazed by a bullet; Rudrani Devi and Linda Ragsdale, both of Nashville, who both underwent surgery for bullet wounds; and Michael Rudder of Montreal, who remains in intensive care after being shot three times. Other members of the mission narrowly escaped the attack.

Garvey says that back in the U.S., the group learned of the attacks by checking the news online. They were made aware that their group was staying in the hotels being attacked, and phoned a business partner in India for further details.

Garvey says she spoke with Master Charles who described the attacks. "He described to me two different aspects of it. He talked to me about terrifying experience, that they were closed in their rooms for 45 hours."

Garvey explained that "Most of them had their mattresses and their bureaus up against the door the grenades were going off there was constant gunfire, they didn’t know

at any time if that door was going to open if it was going to be someone to save or it was going to be someone to take them out.... it was an intense terrifying experience."

Material from the Associated Press is included in this report.