Burning Man and Black Rock Arts Foundation Director Chris Bently’s estranged ex-wife has been found dead by a process server sent to deliver an eviction notice in her home town. The information we have is Mr Bently, whom the Bently Reserve (the converted Federal reserve building used for many Burning Man functions) is named after, is currently in London. Our condolences go out to the family and friends of Amber Marie Bently.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/jul/24/us-obit-amber-bently/
GARDNERVILLE — Sheriff’s deputies are investigating the death of a San Francisco businesswoman, jewelry designer and socialite whose body was found last week in her Nevada apartment.
Authorities on Wednesday said Amber Marie Bently’s body was discovered Friday by a process server who went to deliver an eviction notice. No one had reported her missing and it appeared that she had been dead for several weeks, Douglas County sheriff’s Sgt. Pat Brooks said.
Bently, 34, was married to businessman Christopher Bently, CEO of Bently Holdings, a property management company with offices in Minden, Nev., and San Francisco.
The two were active in the San Francisco social scene and enthusiasts of the annual Burning Man festival, held annually around Labor Day on Nevada’s Black Rock Desert north of Reno. About four years ago, the couple was featured as the “new kids on the block” on the San Francisco Social Diary website when they threw a pajama party at their posh Nob Hill penthouse.
Brooks said that there was no evidence of criminal activity or foul play. An autopsy didn’t pinpoint a cause of death and toxicology reports are pending — a process that could take six to eight weeks.
Deputies described Bently as Christopher Bently’s estranged wife and said she lived alone in the apartment in Gardnerville, a town of about 6,000 located 16 miles south of Carson City. The couple was married for at least 10 years, according to published reports. It’s unknown whether they had divorced.
Christopher Bently heads several companies founded by his late father, Donald Bently, an engineer, philanthropist and businessman who died in October at the age of 87.
The elder Bently founded Bently Scientific Co. in the garage of his Berkeley, Calif., home in 1956. He renamed it Bently Nevada Corp. and moved it to Minden in 1961. By the time he sold that company to GE Energy in 2002, the company had 2,000 employees worldwide and offices in 42 counties.
He founded other companies as well, including Bently Pressurized Bearing Co., Bently Agrowdynamics and Bently Biofuels. The Bently name is associated with expansive land holdings in Douglas County’s scenic Carson Valley.
The couple restored the former Federal Reserve Bank in downtown San Francisco and renamed it the Bently Reserve. In 2009, a collection of her jewelry designs was exhibited at the de Young Museum in San Francisco.
Christopher Bently also serves on the advisory board of the Black Rock Arts Foundation as well as the Burning Man Project.
Amber Marie Bently, photo SF Chronicle, Liz Hafalia
Tomas McCabe, executive director Black Rock Arts Foundation, said foundation members were “devastated” to hear of Amber Bently’s death.
“She was a super, outgoing, very creative person,” he told the Associated Press by telephone. “She was always joyful. She made amazing jewelry and beautiful stuff.”
A man who answered the phone at Bently Holdings in Minden said the company would have no comment
We’ll be updating this story as more information comes in. One piece we have, still unconfirmed but certainly explicable, is that her dogs were also found dead at the scene. It appears the story broke this morning, but when found she had been dead for weeks. Here’s 5 Things You Need to Know :
San Fran Socialite Whose CEO Hubby Helped Run Burning Man Was Dead for WEEKS Before Being Discovered posted2 hours agoby Brad Michelson Heavy.com 1 Share (Getty Images) Amber Marie Bently, a 35-year-old San Francisco socialite and jewelry designer, has been found dead in an apartment in Gardnerville, Nevada. Here’s what you should know.
1. She Appeared To Have Been Dead For Several Weeks (Getty)
According to a KTVU report, Amber’s body was discovered in an apartment in Gardnerville, Nevada, on Friday (July 19) by a process server who went to deliver an eviction notice at an apartment on High School Street. It is not clear is the eviction notice was for her or for a neighbor nearby. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Department said it appeared she had been dead for several weeks. She was not reported missing. Amber lived alone in the apartment.
2. The Autopsy Was Inconclusive (Getty)
According to Douglas County Sheriff’s Sgt. Pat Brooks, “There was no evidence of criminal activity or foul play.” He also said that the autopsy was inconclusive on the cause of death. Toxicology reports are pending.
3. She Was Married to the CEO of Bently Holdings (Image courtesy of http://bentlyholdings.com/) Amber Marie Bently was married to Christopher Bently, CEO of the sustainable development company Bently Holdings. According to his bio on the company website, “He is an avid environmentalist who insists on nothing less than exemplary green operating fundamentals in every one of Bently Holdings’s properties.” The company has not made a comment on Amber’s passing.
4. Amber Marie Bently Was A Jewelry Designer (Image courtesy of http://bentlyholdings.com/) One of Amber’s claims to fame was her high-end jewelry that she often sold at big events in San Francisco. Prices for her hand-made, one-of-a-kind pieces ranged from $500 to $6,500. In 2009, a collection of her jewelry designs was exhibited at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. The website for Amber’s jewelry has been taken down.
5. The Bently Couple Were Burning Man Enthusiasts (Image courtesy of Facebook) The couple were enthusiasts for the Burning Man music festival that takes place annually in Black Rock Desert in Nevada. They love it so much that Christopher Bently serves on the board of directors of the Burning Man Project, which is responsible for upholding the values described in the Ten Principles of Burning Man. Although the couple were not living with each other at the time of Amber’s death, it is unclear whether they were divorced.
Read more at: http://www.heavy.com/news/2013/07/amber-marie-bently-dead-rip/
She was found dead last Friday:
On Friday, 07/19/13, at approximately 4:30 pm, Investigators of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office responded to an apartment in the 1200 block of High School St, in Gardnerville, reference a death investigation.
Information revealed that a civil process server had gone to the location to serve an eviction, and had discovered a deceased person inside the residence.
The decedent, later identified as 34 year-old Amber Marie Bently, rented and resided alone in the apartment. It appears Bently was deceased inside the apartment for several weeks.
No evidence of criminal activity or foul play was discovered. Cause of death is pending.
The investigation continues.
Here’s a link to their 2009 Pyjama Party, their debut on the Nob Hill scene. They wanted to throw a party to blend their society friends together with their Burner friends, and Pyjamas seemed like a common denominator:
| New kids on the block, Amber Marie and Chris Bently, threw an old fashioned pajama party for their eclectic friends, who all flipped over the 360 degree views of the city and the bay from their two-story Nob Hill Penthouse.Already married for 10 years (she’s barely 30 while he’s only 38) the enthusiastic duo participate in a myriad of civic, social, charitable, and business ventures around town.In the last few years, this real estate family has restored the former Federal Reserve Bank, now named the Bently Reserve, and converted it to office, retail, conference and event spaces. They’ve also opened Kamalaspa in downtown Union Square. |
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Lounging in our PJs
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| Three years ago the Bentlys went to their first Burning Man, a week long art event at Black Rock City in the Nevada desert. Perhaps the ultimate in performance art, more than 50,000 set up camp; all with the idea to express themselves through art, dress, actions, whatever. Having just watch the Burning man CD I realized this is a real happening!The Bentlys wanted to throw a party to blend their Burning Man art friends with their society friends. They decided that PJ party was just the ticket to relax so many who were strangers.Everyone seemed to get into the act. I must admit, it was fun and a lot less risqué than I imagined, thank goodness. And this artsy crowd lived up to expectations, no two dressed alike. PJs covered the gamut from Brooks Brothers and flannels to oriental robes and black negligees. |
| Partito Tequila was a featured favorite, shots or margaritas, accompanied by mounds of caviar, an oyster bar, soup shooters and cheese trays to keep everyone happy, while the DJ played into the night.One young guest said about the Burning Man scene, “I really like this … I missed the 70s, it’s like another era, a walk on wild side, with a mix of people from every strata and the common denominator is pajamas.”On the way home, I thought it was hilarious seeing guests trotting around Nob Hill in their jammies. I wonder what the neighbors were thinking – welcome to the neighborhood. |
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A bio on Mrs Bently from a Fashion show she did with her jewellery line:
Amber Marie Bently launched her eponymous collection of couture jewelry after immersing herself in the fine art of jewelry craftsmanship at the renowned Revere Academy in San Francisco. Her dedication to forwarding environmental conservation and sustainable style inspired her to create jewelry handcrafted from 18 karat recycled gold and responsibly sourced gemstones. Her environmentalism, global travel, and lifelong interest in Eastern history and culture have together influenced her design of one-of-a-kind pieces that are unique in today’s marketplace. She has traveled extensively throughout India, and draws many of her design ideas from these experiences.
Amber Marie is a well-known contributor to conservation causes, serving on the board of nonprofit environmental organizations such as Global Green USA, Forest Ethics, and PRBO Conservation Science. She is a San Francisco style icon often featured on the red carpet of the city’s galas, and actively promotes green fashion among San Francisco’s style leaders.
An interview with the couple from 2007, when they opened a spa in Union Square:
[Update 2:34am PST 7/25/13 - Daily Mail UK has some new details. Another fact first posted at Burners.Me turns out to be true, Chris Bently is in London. Not sure if he spoke with the Daily Mail directly. It is so sad that no-one found this girl for so long, just an absolute tragedy]
A cause of death has not yet been determined and the results of a toxicology test could take up to eight weeks to arrive.
Douglas County Sheriff’s office said Mrs Bently had been living alone in the apartment where her body was found in Gardnerville, outside Carson City.
Mrs Bently, who had separated from her husband last year after being married for about ten years, was well known for her parties and the couple’s building renovations in San Francisco.
The couple, who supported environmental charities, also supported the Burning Man arts festival, which is held in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, near Reno.
After they separated last year Mrs Bently swapped their Nob Hill penthouse and Stinson Beach home for a place in Sausalito before moving to an apartment in Gardnerville, where she had been raised, according to SF Gate.
Mr Bently, who is currently in London, said they had not divorced and described his wife as ‘a wonderful human being who contributed so much to San Francisco’.
He added: ‘She was greatly loved by family and friends, and we feel her loss deeply.’
So, here’s the key facts:
they were legally married, separated in 2012 but not yet divorced, she had been living alone in a rented apartment, she was about to be evicted in the town she grew up in, estranged in rural Nevada; when the body was found, he was in London. She had not been reported missing.
Those are the essential facts compiled from what the press coverage from mainstream publications says. It sounds like Gardnerville is a very remote part of one of the most remote states. The press story is spreading around the world, but each one seems to have the same information…we’ve been working on it to bring you anything fresh, I think the Daily Mail got a direct interview with Mr Bently.
I’ve been to Carson City, it doesn’t seem like the place where this type of thing occurs. Although I was amazed at the size of the RV storage facility, right next to the prison. We’ve told some stories on this blog before that suggest it is still the Wild, Wild West out there in some parts of Nevada.
Amber seems like she was a lovely and generous person, and a creative and talented designer, a huge loss to the Burner community. What a sad way to end up. Here is 15 Minutes with Amber Marie Bently
It also seems like Mrs Bently went out of her way to apply her creative energies towards positive causes, having been inspired by Burning Man:
In a sign of her generous nature to environmental charities, in September 2007, Mrs Bently flew Tippi Hedren to San Francisco for a fundraising event. A portion of the money raised by selling Mrs Bently’s hand-crafted jewellery was donated to the actress’s Roar Foundation.
The designer created her gold pieces, inset with crystals and stones, in the basement of their Nob Hill home.
She told SF Luxe in 2007 that her interest in design had come about after she made bead necklaces with her husband to wear at the Burning Man festival.
‘We kept going back to the bead store, and I kept making jewellery. And finally I’m like “I’ve got to start selling these because I have too much,’ she said.
Mrs Bently added that she was drawn to the healing properties of rocks, adding: ‘I wear a lot of rubies because I feel in balancing the chakras you are more creative and you are more open to a creative outlook.’
Her one-off jewellery pieces, which she sold in stores and at charity functions in San Francisco, reached prices of between $500 to $6,500, according to Heavy.com.
As well as environmental charities, Mrs Bently supported the Dress for Success program that helps provide women with suitable outfits to wear for job interviews in 2008, according to the San Francisco Sentinel.
…The couple’s love of art and spirituality led them on several trips to India, Indonesia and Thailand. After returning from one trip, where she learned about the Ayurveda healing practices, Mrs Bently opened a spa in the city.
more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2377473/San-Francisco-socialite-Burning-Man-festival-supporter-dead-apartment-weeks.html#ixzz2a35d3YRx
Filed under: News Tagged: 2013, bmorg, cops, crime, drugs, news, press, scandal, stories
