As someone who worked with her, I was shocked to learn that Vicky Teinaki passed away late last week. The news has left me reeling, and reflecting on my own life.
We’re hoping to do a tribute to Vicky as part of UK GovCamp, which she was planning to attend. I started to draft a message for the opening ceremony, which I have found cathartic as it is helping me process my feelings.
I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, in case you haven’t heard, but a dear member of the community passed away last week in Vicky Teinaki.
Vicky, or Vi-y, as she was affectionately known in the North East, was a catalyst for design and the public sector. She was not only a friend, but an inspiration and hero of mine, as she will have been to many others.
She was kind, humble, witty, knowledgeable, thoughtful, hard-working, curious and prolific at whatever she set her mind to. When I first met her, I thought she was a content designer because of the amount of writing she did online. Turns out it was one one of her many skills; she was an interaction designer, former developer, design researcher, champion colourist, accomplished live tweeter, and keen traveller.
She had a voracious appetite for knowledge, reading more than anyone else I knew. She had the uncanny ability to process that knowledge and apply it to whatever she was working on. Her brain was truly a marvel.
We got to work quite closely together as part of the GOV.UK Design System. She was so generous with her time and her work had a huge impact in making things better for citizens. She was a frequent contributor, a key part of our working group, and frequent speaker at our events – such as Design System Day. In fact, Vicky so frequently spoke at our events, that our team joked that there was a permanent “Vicky Teinaki slot” in our event schedule.
Vicky was so capable, that she could have been very well compensated for her work if she were a bit more mercenary. But she chose her roles based on the impact she could have on the public sector, and how much she could help citizens. A testament to her values and integrity.
She was a natural leader. Someone who drew you in with their passion and enthusiasm for their work, whilst being humble with the amount of knowledge she possessed. And she was a tireless advocate for everyone else too. She often tweeted about the importance community management, put me forward for talks, and turned up to my talks to live tweet them (back when Twitter wasn’t sh*t).
Amanda Smith, used the phrase #GovCrush a few years ago, to describe people whose public sector work you admired from afar. Vicky was my first GovCrush. She made me feel excited about working in the public sector.
I just wanted a bit more time with Vicky y’know. The public sector and design world has lost a remarkable woman. She will be sorely missed.