Alan Scherr’s decades of commitment to spirituality and simple living earned him recognition as an inspiring teacher of astrology, self-awareness and meditation. Scherr, 58, described his life as a “challenging . . . solitary journey.“ That journey led him to Mumbai, India, where he and his daughter Naomi, 13, were among more than 150 people killed by terrorists in attacks that began Wednesday.

People have come from around the world to seek peace at the Synchronicity Foundation’s retreat center at Horseshoe Mountain. The foundation is a nonprofit spiritual organization founded in 1983.