Shirley Elliot

Shirley was born at home on West 24th Street in her beloved Coney Island in Brooklyn, NY, on January 17, 1937— to parents Katie and Abraham Reinhardt, who predeceased her. She was also predeceased by her older sisters Rose Reinhardt and Helene Kirchthurn, and her older brother Louis Reinhardt.

She and her husband-to-be, David Elliot, met as teenagers on that same street in Coney Island. They both attended Abraham Lincoln High School where she proudly graduated at the top of her class. They married young on August 28, 1955, and built a life and family together: first in Brooklyn, then in Westchester County, then in upstate New York until David’s untimely passing from cancer in 1998 after 43 years of marriage. Shirley then moved to Larchmont, NY, to be closer to family, where she lived for 19 years before relocating to Stamford, CT in 2017. She moved to New Canaan in 2022.

Shirley is survived by her son, Alan Scot Elliot (Enrique Gular) of Larchmont, NY, daughter Debra Elliot Bennett of Stamford, CT, granddaughters Katelyn Teitelbaum (Jason Teitelbaum) of Stamford, CT and Jaclyn Bennett (James Perkins) of Kendal, UK, and great-grandchildren Andrew, Maya and Chase Teitelbaum.

Above all else, Shirley was an unconditionally loving, proud, protective mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She took pride in her work as a bookkeeper, and was an active volunteer for mental health and veteran’s charities. She also enjoyed playing Mah Jongg and bingo, ballroom dancing at weddings and bar-mitzvahs, knitting sweaters and needlepointing floral tapestries, talking and laughing too much and too loudly, showing up at every school performance and sporting event, partying with her husband on New Year’s Eve, telling stories of adventures on the boardwalk, unknowingly cracking up the room with irreverent observations and Yiddishisms, eating cream cheese on cinnamon raisin bread at any Manhattan Chock Full O’Nuts, and underbidding on mystery boxes of junk at antique auctions and flea markets hoping to find a hidden treasure. She had a legendary sweet tooth and always had a secret stash of chocolates, which she would help her granddaughters find whenever they came to visit. When she had great-grandchildren, she would give them rides on her walker, which was as fun for her as it was for them. She never missed anyone’s birthday or anniversary, and would spend hours in stationery stores selecting the perfect greeting card to send, which she would mail with a generous gift.

Despite a devastating car accident at the age of 45 which changed her life’s trajectory, Shirley powered through brain and bodily injury for another 44 years and achieved a level of successful recovery and independence possible only for the most determined, strong and resilient. She fought fiercely for a life which brought her great joys and great sorrows, and loved her family with the same unwavering spirit, commitment and devotion. We will miss her warm smile, her infectious laugh, her sparkling eyes, her hugs and her kisses. We will carry her with us always.

A private service was held on January 8, 2026 at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Fairview, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Shirley’s memory to the Brain Injury Association of America, the Waveny LifeCare Network, the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center or the charity of your choice.