Lisa L. Hawley's family knew early in her life that she would always value the environment.

At 4 years old, she loved horses and the outdoors, said her mother, Rosalie Hawley Wright. And growing up around Lake Minnetonka gave her an appreciation for nature, her mother said.

So her later work for environmental causes came as no surprise.

Hawley, 51, died of cancer at her home in Hawaii Oct. 12. She lived in Hawaii for the past 15 years with her partner, Corey T. Ryder.

She and Ryder founded the Earth Foundation in Maui, an organization that works to protect Hawaii and the Pacific Ocean. At the time of her death she was working to prevent the island from being overdeveloped, family members said.

Hawley's mother said her daughter believed that the pristine beaches should be free of business development.

Hawley also worked on the television series "Voice of the Planet," featuring William Shatner and Faye Dunaway, which was shot in countries around the world, her family said.

Her brother James Hawley said her interest in the environment stemmed from her horse riding. By age 14 she was an excellent rider who competed in hunter-jumper events and participated in the Long Lake Hunt, her family said. She also was an accomplished skier and water skier.

Hawley graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 1978.

Ryder said Hawley was an accomplished businesswoman who managed her investments for her livelihood, and she was a meditation teacher for 30 years.

In addition to Ryder, her mother and brother James, she also is survived by brothers MacDonald S. Hawley of Evergreen, Colo., and McGill Hawley of Gainesville, Texas; sisters Lanes Hawley Cole of Naples, Fla., and Terrell Hawley Simonson of Golden Valley.

Services will be held Sunday on a four-hour cruise on the ocean at Maui.

The memorial will be in the tradition of an Irish wake, and fun and lightness will be an important part of sending Lisa's spirit into her new realm, Ryder said.