Teresa Pelkie

Teresa was born on a steamy July day in 1953 in Havana Cuba, to Albert Andux and his wife Joan. Shortly after, the small but growing family relocated to Deptford, NJ, across the Delaware river from Philadelphia, where Joan was from. Sisters (Beth and Joan) and a brother (Albert) were added to the family.

In 1962, Albert’s sister and brother-in-law had to flee Cuba after all of their property was confiscated. They came to the small 3-bedroom Andux home in Deptford with their eight children, an event that was chronicled in the local newspaper. Shortly thereafter, Teresa gained another sister (Fran) and later another (Sara), completing the Andux family.

Teresa attended local schools, and took a degree from Glassboro State College, NJ. After a short stint of working for the FBI in Washington, DC, she moved to Ft. Lauderdale, FL where she worked in social services. Still on the move, in the late 80’s she moved to San Diego, CA where she loved living near the beach. She worked there for San Diego County.

In May 1994, she met her husband Craig in Old Town, San Diego, and the couple were married in a small ceremony in Valley Center, CA in February 1995, where they made their home for the next 26 years.

In 1997, a neighbor’s “Lassie dog” wandered into their yard and liked the attention she was giving it. Thus began her life-long love of dogs. More “rescue dogs” followed, and for a time, the couple specialized in Tri-color collies. In later years, Teresa fell in love with “little dogs”, and adopted two poodles, a malti-poo and two terriers.

Also in 1997, Teresa went out for a jog one morning and decided she liked jogging and running. She worked up to running in local races, and competed in more than 200 5K, 10K and 50 Half Marathon races. She ran in San Diego, Carlsbad CA, across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco on its 75th anniversary in 2011, in New Hampshire, Philadelphia and North Carolina, among other locations.

In the late 90’s, Teresa decided to try her hand at the then new area of web development and started her own web development company (wwwsights). She also started working as an adjunct professor at Palomar Community College (San Marcos, CA). She worked with other community colleges in California, including MiraCosta College (Oceanside, CA), San Diego Community College, Grossmont and Cuyamaca college (El Cajon, CA) and College of the Canyons (Valencia, CA). She enjoyed going into the classroom, as it gave her a chance to meet and work closely with her students, plus she could wear her petite suits that she was fond of. In 2011 she earned a Masters Degree in Instructional Design from Walden University.

In 2021, the couple decided to move to Texas. They sold their house in Valley Center, rented an RV and a trailer, and took three dogs and a cat with them to Wimberley, TX, followed by a moving van with all of their household goods. They quickly grew to like being in Texas, and bought a house in Spring Branch in April 2022, about 35 miles north of San Antonio.

Teresa was passionate about her life, running, working, education and her jobs, her dogs, her family, her husband, and the Lord Jesus Christ. She retired in June 2026. On August 11, she passed away suddenly due to complications from an on-going medical condition she was fighting.

Teresa is fondly remembered and greatly missed by her family, her friends, and most of all, her husband. She was quick to make friends and keep them.

One of her favorite Bible verses is Psalm 118: 24: “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”

Anyone wishing to memorialize her may make a contribution to a local animal shelter or rescue organization in her name.