Human Race

DIED: Homeschool pioneer Christopher J. Klicka, 48, died on Oct. 12 after battling multiple sclerosis for 15 years. The father of seven homeschooled children, Klicka worked with the Home School Legal Defense Association for over 24 years as its first full-time attorney, and he wrote five books on homeschooling.

DIED: Spiros Zodhiates, missions leader and Greek-American Bible scholar, died at 87 on Oct. 10. Zodhiates came to the United States in 1946 to work for a tiny, two-employee organization housed in a one-room office in Times Square. He developed that mission to become Advancing the Ministries of the Gospel International, a missions and relief organization that ministers in 55 different countries and became a model for ministries like World Vision and Samaritan's Purse. His Bible translation includes the Modern Greek New Testament and the Key Word Study Bible.

RETIRING: Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the self-proclaimed "Messiah" and controversial leader of the Unification Church, is passing his ministry on to his three sons. Moon, famous for presiding over mass weddings that unite tens of thousands of his followers in arranged marriages, is also a business emperor who owns The Washington Times and has founded other enterprises-soccer teams, a ballet troupe, hospitals, and universities-in half a dozen countries.

REELECTED: John I. Jenkins, the Notre Dame University president who divided the campus when he invited President Barack Obama to speak at its commencement last May, will serve a second five-year term as president. Protestors and a professor called for Jenkins' resignation during the Obama controversy, and there was speculation that Jenkins would not be elected to a second term. On Oct. 16, the board of trustees decided otherwise, praising Jenkins' commitment to the "Catholic character of the University."

RESIGNED: U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla., is resigning in the middle of his seventh term to become president of the Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation. One of Barack Obama's early endorsers, Wexler said that his resignation was not due to Florida rumors of political scandal but to the urgency of working for Middle East peace at a "pivotal point": "I believe time is of the urgency. Absolutely. We do not have the luxury to wait."

UNRESCUED: Larimer County (Colo.) Sheriff Jim Alderden said Richard Heene could face felony charges for a stunt involving his 6-year-old son Falcon and a homemade balloon that Heene claimed carried his son and resulted in delays and redirecting of flights at Denver's airport. After a 50-mile, three-county rescue operation only to find no child inside the balloon, authorities say they may hold the father responsible. The FAA has announced it too will investigate the incident.