Teri Gorelick (née Golden), 77, of Sanford, Florida–a woman known for her wit, her music, and her devotion to animals–passed away peacefully on the evening of May 12, 2026.

Born on May 19, 1948, in Jersey City, New Jersey, to Edward & Irma (Gizang) Golden, Teri eventually moved with her husband and daughters to Sarasota to escape the northern winters and be closer to her parents and brothers. She lived for the heat. To Teri, anything below 85 degrees was chilly. While she lived in Sanford recently, she spent most of her life in Sarasota. She loved that her home there backed up against the woods and she prized the year-round greenery, though she was never one for a hike. Teri would travel across the globe to hold a koala, but at home, her heart belonged to her dogs sleeping on her lap.

Teri loved to travel and worked in various travel-related positions, retiring after managing agencies and starting one of the first home-based travel ventures in her community. Cruising was her passion. Exploring Europe, Australia, and particularly New Zealand were her great pleasures. Teri prized intelligence and was at her best when holding court in a room full of people. Despite her apparent social spark, she often said that she preferred the company of animals to humans. Music was her lifelong passion. In the 1990s, she built an online community as “MoM: Mistress of Metal,” hosting her own radio station and traveling for progressive metal concerts.

She was not traditionally religious but held a steady spirituality, describing herself as agnostic in religion and Jewish in tradition. She believed that we are all composed of a shared energy that expands back into the consciousness of the universe upon passing.

Teri’s legacy lives on through her family. She is survived by her husband of 50 years, Philip Gorelick; her daughter, Amy Gorelick (Lee Hendricks) and grandchildren Melanie and Graham; her daughter Jana Spitalnick (Toby Spitalnick) and grandchildren Asher and Isla; her brothers, Murray (Ilene) Golden and Lawrence (Lisa) Golden; and brothers-in-law Jerrold (Donna) Gorelick and Ronald (Maureen) Gorelick.

Funeral Service for Teri will be held at 10:00 AM, Monday, May 18, 2026 at the Congregation of Reform Judaism (928 Malone Drive, Orlando, FL) with Rabbi Rachael Jackson of Congregation Reform Judaism officiating. Interment will follow at Congregation Reform Judaism Cemetery, Gotha, FL at 11:30 AM. She will lie in rest under the limbs of a young growing Live Oak, awaiting Philip to join her in the future.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations to the ASPCA in honor of Teri’s love for animals.

Service entrusted to Beth Shalom Memorial Chapel, 933 Lee Road, Suit 101, Orlando, Florida 407-599-1180.