Farewell 18F

18F was my dream org. I first learned about it while considering UX back around 2014. I literally bookmarked the website into my “aspirational” folder.

I’m glad I made it in before it got wiped off the face of the earth tonight.

My first week there, I had a virtual coffee with the Chief of Staff, who told me that “18F doesn’t ship software, it ships culture.” Being new, I didn’t quite understand.

But now, at the end, I do.

The relationships I have built, the collaborative nature of everyone I met, the relentless drive to just make things better...you can’t destroy that.

We’ll just grow little 18Fs wherever we end up.

No matter what happens next, I feel heartened that we’re still supporting each other. Having had my world torn out from under my feet already with my mom’s death 6 years ago, knowing that people have your back is what helps the most to move forward.

By mid-day March 1, we’d already mobilized and launched 18f.org to tell our story. Like the tagline says, “we’re not done yet.” Although as someone pointed out later, it really means we actually don’t know how to stop! 😅

I also found this in my collection. Someone had given it to me at the last 18F “IRL” (aka offsite) in DC in 2023. Figured this would happen to me. I posted it on Instagram because of course I did.