Marita Camacho Quirós, Costa Rica’s Former First Lady and Oldest Citizen, Dies at 114

Marita Camacho Quirós, Costa Rica’s former First Lady and the nation’s oldest person on record, passed away on June 20, 2025, in San José at the age of 114. Her extraordinary life, spanning over a century, left an enduring mark on Costa Rican history through her public service and social advocacy.

Born on March 10, 1911, in San Ramón, Alajuela Province, to farmers Salustio Camacho and Zeneida Quirós, she was the seventh daughter in her family. On April 16, 1932, she married Francisco Orlich Bolmarcich, a businessman and politician who later became Costa Rica’s 34th president from 1962 to 1966. Together, they adopted two children, Francisco José and Mauricio Orlich Camacho.

As First Lady, Camacho Quirós made history by joining her husband at the 1962 presidential handover ceremony, a first for Costa Rica. She devoted herself to improving children’s welfare, promoting shelters, schools, canteens, and community centers nationwide. Her efforts were pivotal in establishing the Hospital Nacional de Niños in 1964, and she supported housing initiatives for underprivileged families through Costa Rican Social Security. On the international stage, she accompanied President Orlich on key visits, meeting figures like Pope John XXIII, Francisco Franco, and U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

Camacho Quirós became a supercentenarian on March 10, 2021, reaching age 110, a milestone no other First Lady in history had achieved. In March 2023, she celebrated her 112th birthday, becoming the first Costa Rican to reach that age. She continued to break records, reaching 113 and 114, and at the time of her death was Costa Rica’s oldest living person, the world’s oldest former First Lady, and the ninth-oldest person globally.

Outliving her husband by over 55 years, she remained a symbol of resilience and service and a link to an era past. 

House Advances Reconciliation Bill as Trump Tariffs in Limbo

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), a reconciliation bill that extends and expands major provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, increases the child tax credit temporarily, removes taxes on tips for workers in certain industries, and introduces new administrative requirements for Medicaid eligibility. The legislation also includes spending cuts, rescinds some unspent energy funds, revises Opportunity Zones, and imposes new fees on electric and hybrid vehicles. Over ten years, the bill is projected to increase primary deficits by nearly $2.8 trillion. The bill now moves to the Senate, where significant changes are expected before final passage.

Separately, in a setback for President Trump, federal judges ruled that his recent tariffs exceeded presidential authority in imposing sweeping tariffs on imports from most countries and that only Congress held such authority. However, the tariffs will remain in effect while the administration appeals the decision. Trump has since announced additional tariffs on steel imports.

 

Pope Leo XIV Caps First Month of Papacy

Pope Leo XIV, the new leader of Roman Catholic Church, made history this month as first US-born pope and the first from the Augustinian order. Born as Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago, his election on May 8, 2025, followed a swift two-day conclave of four ballots, one of the shortest in modern history.

The conclave, held in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, brought together 133 cardinals from across the world  to choose the successor to Pope Francis, who died in April following recent illnesses.

Discussions among the cardinals reportedly focused on addressing global challenges like secularism, church reform, and outreach to marginalized communities. Prevost’s extensive experience as a missionary in Peru, coupled with his Vatican roles, including leadership in the Dicastery for Bishops, positioned him as a unifying figure capable of bridging the divide between the more traditionalist conservative bloc and the more liberal bloc aligned with Pope Francis. Prevost was seen as close to Pope Francis and somewhat liberal-leaning, though a more moderate choice overall compared to other cardinals rumored to be contenders for pope.

Upon appearing on St. Peter’s Basilica’s balcony, Pope Leo XIV greeted the onlookers in Vatican City, delivering his address in fluent Italian and Spanish. He thanked the late Pope Francis and reflected on his nearly two decades in Peru, where he most recently served as Bishop of Chiclayo.

In his first weeks as pope, Leo XIV celebrated Mass in the Sistine Chapel, urged Church unity, prayed for war victims, and took possession of St. John Lateran. He met key cardinals to address abuse reform and Vatican finances, emphasizing mercy and human dignity.

 

Harrison Ruffin Tyler, Grandon of 10th President, Dies at 96

Virginia businessman Harrison Ruffin Tyler died last Sunday at 96. Tyler, a noted preservationist of Virginia history, was perhaps most noted for being the last living grandson of the 10th US President John Tyler, who was born in 1790 and left office in 1845.

This genealogical quirk was made possible by President Tyler and his son, Lyon Gardiner Tyler, both having children late in life, allowing the lives of the three men to span nearly the entire existence of the US as a country and across all 47 presidential administrations, from Washington’s first term to Trump’s second.

 

Terrorist Attack in Indian-Administered Kashmir Kills 26

On Tuesday, gunmen attacked tourists in the Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam, Indian-administered Kashmir, killing 26 people, mostly Indian nationals, in the deadliest civilian assault in the region in over two decades. The Resistance Front (TRF), a group linked to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility, though Pakistan’s government denied involvement and called for a neutral investigation.

India responded by downgrading diplomatic ties with Pakistan, closing the main border crossing, expelling diplomats, and suspending the Indus Water Treaty, a longstanding water-sharing agreement. Pakistan retaliated by shutting its airspace to Indian flights and halting bilateral trade. Both nations revoked visas for each other’s citizens, and minor cross-border exchanges of gunfire were reported, though without casualties.

The incident has sharply escalated tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors, further destabilizing already fraught relations and risking renewed hostilities over the disputed Kashmir region.