Dr. Terri Grodzicker
Funeral Service: September 22, 2026 11:30 AM
Funeral Home: Gutterman’s Woodbury Chapel
8000 Jericho Turnpike,
Woodbury, NY 11797
Notes:
November 18, 1942 – September 15, 2026
It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. Terri Grodzicker, an accomplished scientist and mentor, beloved cousin, cherished friend, and extraordinary woman whose intellect, warmth, and passion for life touched everyone who knew her.
During a remarkable career spanning more than five decades at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Terri made groundbreaking contributions to molecular genetics, guided generations of scientists, and became a respected leader in the international scientific community. She was also a trailblazer for women in science, helping to open doors for those who followed and serving as a role model through her intellect, determination, independence, and unwavering commitment to excellence.
Terri grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where she attended the Packer Collegiate Institute. She went on to Wellesley College, earning an A.B. in Zoology and Physiology in 1963, before returning to New York to pursue graduate studies at Columbia University. There, she earned an M.S. in Molecular Genetics in 1965 and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences in 1969. Following Columbia, Terri continued her scientific training as an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at Harvard Medical School from 1969 to 1971, before embarking on the career that would make Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory her scientific home for more than five decades.
A gifted geneticist, Terri’s pioneering research on adenovirus genetics and molecular biology advanced the understanding of gene organization and regulation and helped lay foundations that influenced decades of subsequent discovery. Her influence, however, extended far beyond her own research. She devoted much of her professional life to fostering scientific inquiry, exchange, and education and to nurturing the careers of younger scientists.
During her long tenure at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Terri served as Assistant Director and later Dean of Academic Affairs and held numerous other positions of scientific and institutional leadership. As Executive Editor of Genes & Development, she played an important role in shaping one of the world’s leading journals in molecular biology and genetics. Through her research, editorial leadership, teaching, and mentorship, Terri influenced generations of scientists and left an enduring mark on the scientific community to which she devoted her life.
For those fortunate enough to have known her personally, however, Terri will be remembered as much for who she was as for what she accomplished. She was endlessly curious, fiercely intelligent, wonderfully engaging, and a truly gifted conversationalist. Whether discussing science, politics, opera, books, current events, or family history, Terri brought insight, humor, knowledge, and conviction to every exchange. Time spent with her was always engaging, often spirited, and never dull.
Family was one of Terri’s great joys. She especially cherished Thanksgiving and Jewish holiday celebrations and relished the opportunity to gather with those she loved around a table filled with food, laughter, stories, and lively conversation. She had a particular affection for the family dogs, who quickly learned that Terri could be counted upon for both attention and culinary generosity. At Thanksgiving she could invariably be found sneaking pieces of crispy turkey skin before dinner was served—a small tradition that became one of the family’s treasured memories of her. Everyone looked forward to the summer Family BBQ & pool party that she hosted and cleverly managed to appoint others to do the actual grilling.
Terri was a devoted lover of the opera and a longtime patron of the Metropolitan Opera. Some of her happiest moments were spent attending performances and sharing her love and knowledge of music with family and friends. Like so many of her interests, opera was not something Terri merely enjoyed; it was something she delighted in discussing, analyzing, and sharing with others.
Terri leaves behind an extraordinary legacy — not only in the science she advanced, the scientists she mentored, and the institutions she helped shape, but in the lives of the family, friends, colleagues, and students who were fortunate enough to share in her remarkable intellect, curiosity, and humor. The scientific community has lost a pioneering scientist and leader. Those who loved Terri have lost an irreplaceable presence: a source of knowledge and spirited conversation, a keeper of family history, a devoted cousin and friend, and a singular personality who made every gathering more interesting simply by being there.
She will be deeply missed and remembered with love, gratitude, and admiration.
May her memory be a blessing.
Guests are to arrive between 10:30am and 11:30am. Sanctuary service will start promptly at 11:30am. Following the service, burial will take place at New Montefiore Cemetery in West Babylon, NY.