| The class of 1961 will remember a tall slim girl with a flag of shimmering silver blonde hair singing a madrigal or playing a recorder with a mischievous grin. She was well-cast as an alternative Cherry Blossom Queen riding on a little red wagon and pulled along the Mall in Washington by several costumed classmates at the rear of the official 1961 Cherry Blossom Parade.
Betsys considerable artistic talent took her to Carnegie Mellon for their Fine Art degree. After a year, however, she decided to pursue a more academic path for which she secured a full scholarship to St. Johns in Annapolis. Here she met her first husband Robert Fields with whom she had 3 daughters, Lis, Katharine and Ruscha. In 1966 they moved to Cambridge, England, so Robert could pursue a PhD. While he studied Brett looked after their three young children, continued with her painting and made bespoke dresses and gowns for her fellow academic wives. In 1968 she and Robert embarked on the Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) spiritual path led by guru Charan Singh. Brett's commitment was to be lifelong follower. On Charan Singh's death she continued her practice with his successor Baba Gurinder Singh. She frequently travelled to the RSSB center in Punjab, India to further strengthen her spiritual journey. When her marriage to Robert ended in 1976 she struggled for a time with great strength and fortitude to raise her three young children on her own. During this time she discovered a talent for business when she became an executive agent for Indian Handicrafts House, an importer of Indian clothes, textiles and crafts. In 1981 she married Richard Funnell, a landscape consultant and also a follower of Charan Singh. In 1985 Brett and Richard combined their skills to found Cambridge Plant Interiors (CPI). Brett's creative flair, eye for detail and business acumen allied with Richard's horticultural expertise proved to be a winning combination. Within years CPI became one of Cambridge's most successful interior plant companies, supplying high quality tropical plants to a variety of companies including those of the UK's rapidly expanding "Silicon Fen". They bought and renovated a derelict Victorian farm for which they won a prestigious conservation award. This impressive property became their HQ, with extensive offices, plant showrooms and workshops. In addition to CPI Brett was engaged in an impressive range of activities. She donated extensive time and energy to substantial architectural and landscape projects at the UK headquarters of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas Foundation; sang in a local choir and enjoyed time with her daughters and 6 grandchildren. After living with breast cancer for many years she died from complications of the disease on the 24th of October 2015. From Richard Funnell and Jane Lake Birt |
