"She was just ripping on the surfboard, riding with the guys," Forbes said. Kirby Brown leans against a wall outside her home on "Gringo Hill" in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. Then she would head west again, stopping off to visit friends and cousins in Colorado on the way to San Francisco for a big painting job that would keep her busy until the holidays.īut when it came time to leave home for Ray's seminar, Brown had second thoughts. Believing the so-called "mystical millionaire" could coach her on how to "live impeccably," as he put it, Brown ponied up $9,695 - her life's savings - for Ray's Spiritual Warrior seminar in Sedona, Arizona, in October 2009.Īfterward, she planned to study the Venetian style of faux-finish painting with a master in Minnesota. She was drawn more to the practical approach of James Arthur Ray, whose seminars challenged participants to shed fears and old baggage and build "harmonic" lives with personal and financial success in balance. "I don't think she got too hung up on the different chakras." She was "not overly 'New Agey,'" said her longtime friend and confidante, Emily Forbes, "just looking outside the box."įrom the best-selling author Caroline Myss, who blends mysticism, spirituality and healing, Brown learned, "We are in charge of our happiness," said Forbes, her best friend since their freshman year at the State University of New York at Geneseo.īut Brown remained a healthy skeptic. So, it was no surprise to the people who knew Brown that when she turned her light inward, she gave it her usual "135%." She constantly tried new things, and when she found something she liked, it became a part of her. To that end, she lived "a self-styled life," added her sister Jean Brown, who admired Kirby's ability to set priorities and create "a wonderfully abnormal life." "Trying to find that bigger meaning was important to her," said her brother, Bobby Brown. And so, her family and friends say, she dedicated herself to introspection and self-improvement. Although her bohemian lifestyle in San Jose del Cabo was the envy of her friends, she felt something was missing.Īt 38, she was still searching for her one true love. And on many mornings, she shared the waves at Old Man's break with the legends of long board surfing.Īs summer faded into fall in 2009, Kirby Brown stood at a crossroads. Her high-end interior painting business was taking off. Sedona, Arizona (CNN) - She was a free-spirited adventurer who lived in Mexico in an octagonal art-filled house on "Gringo Hill," overlooking the Sea of Cortez. This profile was originally published in April. Expert Christine Whelan says Brown was typical of the people drawn to RayĪn Arizona court on Thursday found James Ray guilty of negliglent homicide in the death of Kirby Brown and two others who participated in a sweat lodge ceremony led by Ray in 2009.She turned to Ray to decide what she wanted from life, to set goals and achieve them.Her life was filled with friends, family and adventure, but she wanted more. Kirby Brown, 38, died in a sweat lodge operated by self-help author James Arthur Ray.
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