Liz Neuman's passion for pursuing an active and healthy life led her to popular self-help guru James Arthur Ray -- and ultimately to her death after attending a sweat lodge ceremony with other Ray followers in Arizona.

The Prior Lake woman's death Saturday was the third fatality among the group participating in the Oct. 8 retreat near Sedona, a town that attracts many in the New Age spiritual movement. Crowded into a sweat lodge with dozens of other followers, the 49-year-old Neuman fell ill from dehydration and lapsed into a coma.

Neuman family attorney Louis Diesel said a lawsuit is possible pending an investigation by the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. Authorities are treating the deaths as homicides; no one has been charged.

"We'll take appropriate steps to hold accountable those individuals responsible for Liz's death," Diesel said Sunday. "It was a totally preventable death."

About 55 to 65 people had packed the sweat lodge at the Angel Valley Retreat Center rented by Ray for a five-day "Spiritual Warrior" retreat. Authorities were called with reports of people without pulses and not breathing. Twenty-one people were taken to hospitals for symptoms ranging from dehydration to kidney failure. Kirby Brown, 38, of Westtown, N.Y., and James Shore, 40, of Milwaukee, died. A nurse Ray hired was directing CPR at the scene.

Neuman was briefly conscious upon being removed from the lodge but quickly fell into a coma and never regained consciousness, Diesel said. Surrounded by family members, she died at a Flagstaff hospital from organ failure as a result of dehydration, he said.

A formal autopsy will be conducted; Brown and Shore's autopsy results are still pending. No official cause of death has been released. No one else remains hospitalized.

"She was in excellent physical condition at the time" she attended the retreat, Diesel said of Neuman.

"Liz prided herself on leading a healthy and active life," said a statement released by her family Sunday. "She loved to hike, take her dog on walks and share her passion for health with others through the nutritional products she promoted."

Diesel said that Neuman had attended several retreats in the past and enjoyed them immensely.

The five-day retreats are designed to push limits. Participants, who pay up to $10,000, observed a 36-hour fast in a wilderness "vision quest" and then ate breakfast before entering the sweat lodge. Authorities are investigating the sweat lodge's construction and reports that people fell ill at previous ceremonies.

Tere Gutierrez Gingerella said she was at two "Spiritual Warrior" retreats in 2004 and '05 also attended by Neuman, who "vowed" to attend every year. It's unclear how many retreats she attended.

"I don't think Mr. Ray had a more loyal follower than Liz," Gingerella said.

Neuman served as leader of the Minneapolis-area "Journey Expansion Team," which met to exchange ideas based on Ray's teachings. She was scheduled to lead a meeting this Friday.

Among interests listed on her Facebook page was studying personal development material, specifically James Ray seminars. Dozens of memorials were posted on her page by Sunday evening.

Her daughter, Andrea Puckett, posted a plea on her mother's page for anyone who has attended a retreat at the resort to call Diesel.

"My family is heartbroken by the loss of my mother ...," she wrote. "I know this will not be easy, but I ask and beg for your help to learn the truth about what happened at this event."

Ray posted a note about Neuman on his own Facebook page: "Words cannot fully express how deeply I'm saddened by the news of the death of my dear friend Liz. I had the honor of knowing her for seven years, and she was deeply loved and appreciated."

Ray's spokesman, Howard Bragman, said Ray's team is cooperating with authorities.

Neuman is survived by her daughter; two sons, Brett and Bryan, as well as her mother, brother and sister.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Chao Xiong • 612-673-4391