Condolence: Over more than a decade it was the highlight of the academic year at IMC University of Applied Sciences Krems (Austria) when "Dr. Teye" (as hundreds of enthusiastic students respectfully addressed him) and "our Victor" (as professors and staff warmly welcomed him) arrived in Austria to teach many local and international tourism majors.
But he also took numerous "ASU Sun Devils" on their summer schools to Vienna and its neighbouring cities to make them appreciate the destinations and understand the travel industry in a most lively field approach.
I personally had the privilege to work with Victor in Austria, Arizona, Australia and Fidji, get inspired by his insight and professionalism but also enjoy his great hospitality and friendship.
His academic rigour in teaching and research ("you have to `walk the walk´ and not only `talk the talk´!"), his global mindset, empathy, tolerance and respectfulness, and witty analyses enriched numerous encounters. Grief and sorrow not feeling his handshakes and hugs any longer are mitigated by deep gratitude having had "brotha" Victor as a dear colleague and sincere friend. His warm smile and contagious laughter will stay in our memories and continue to spread positive vibrations over our campus forever.
Thank you - herzlichen Dank!

Condolence: Rest in peace Victor. It was a please to know you as a colleague and friend at the IMC. You will always be in my memory as a friendly and student centred lecturer that gave so much to all the people around you.

Condolence: Teye family
Otulo our heats go out to you and your family may god continue to bless you during this period of grief

Condolence: I volunteer for an organization called Can Care. We match newly diagnosed cancer patients with volunteers with the similar cancer, for me it was prostate cancer. Over a year ago I was assigned Victor. Although I live in Oklahoma, I traveled to MDAnderson Houston for treatment and became acquainted with Victor. We both traveled internationally and had other issues in common.
I would see him on my treatment trips to Houston and we soon became fast friends. We would discuss our treatments, our families, our side effects, what to watch out for in treatment.
We would laugh together, we would pray together, cry together, discuss treatment together, discuss the end together.
When he moved back to Phoenix I didn't see him again.
I wish I had known him longer, and had become closer to him. He was a good man, he was a strong man, someone I would have enjoyed knowing longer and better. He put up a good fight, and I will miss him.

Chris

Condolence: Nothing prepares one for the loss of a loved one and I am deeply saddened by the news of uncle victor's passing.I am however thankful for the gift of life God gave us in My uncle Victor; that I had the opportunity to take counsel from his wisdom and experience and also take inspiration from his achievements. I take comfort in knowing that you are in a far better place, resting in the arms of our Lord. Till we meet again, Rest in perfect peace Prof. Victor B Teye.

Condolence: I write with great sadness over the unimaginable loss of a friend, colleague, confidante and brother, Dr. Victor B. Teye who I fondly called “Big Brother Victor”

I first met Victor in 1997 soon after I graduated from Virginia Tech. During my Dissertation research earlier, I was searching for previous studies on Tourism Development in Africa when I stumbled upon his seminal work on tourism development in Ghana (1988), published in a premier journal in the field – The Annals of Tourism Research. I immediately contacted him to let him know how impressed I was with his writing and research that I wanted to be like him when I grew up. Within a very short time of mentoring, we not only became colleagues but bosom friends. He was instrumental in my career development path over the past 20 years through having me accompany him to present papers at conferences in Ghana Botswana, Bermuda among other countries, followed by hosting me and my family for a month during the PANAFEST festival in Ghana in 2000. To top it all, he was instrumental in having me succeed him as a Fulbright Fellow at the Department of Geography and Tourism, University of Cape Coast during the 2002/2003 academic year – shoes that were not easy for me to fill.

Today Dr. Teye’s professional legacy lives on. The last time I checked the current head of the department and at least 3 other senior lecturers are some of the students he mentored.

Our relationship grew tremendously from acquaintance to friendship over the years and I came to discover that brother Victor was a complete man. He exhibited qualities of honesty, loyalty, sincerity and sense of purpose. We chatted a lot about many issues and we tried to stay in touch from anywhere we are in the world.

During his illness, he always sounded positive on the phone and tried to allay my fears of concern for his health by telling me he was doing fine. He sent me a WhatsApp on July 21st during my visit to Sierra Leone wishing me well and asking when I was returning. I replied back stating I would be back on August 12th. When I contacted him upon my return he did not answer his phone but I left him a voice message to say I was back. Little did I know that he was gone to the great beyond until I got the phone call to the effect.

I believe Shakespeare may have been referring to Victor in his play Hamlet when he said:

“What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculty! In form, in moving, how express and admirable! …”

Brother Victor, sleep and take your rest while reminding all of us that there is only one certainty in life - that is DEATH. It will come when it should come and not before.

May you find everlasting peace in the world beyond! I hope our paths will cross again in Heaven. Amen!

Your friend and brother,
Desmond O. Brown. September 3, 2015.
Associate Professor of Tourism
University of Kentucky

Condolence: My condolences to the Teye family. I'm truly sorry for your loss. But remember your loss is Heavens gain and heaven just received another angel. I'm sure he is in a much better place then anyone of us are now.God bless you all!!
" We all belong to God and to him we shall return."

Your brother
Fadi

Condolence: It is with a heavy heart that I learned of the sad demise of my dear friend Victor, affectionately called TARRA by those of us who have known him since our secondary school days in Ghana. Yes, that’s how long my friendship with Victor stretches back; as far back as 1969 to be precise.
Over the years our bond of friendship has continued to grow to the point where I consider Victor as more than a friend, but, indeed, a brother. Upon completion of the University of Ghana we both came to North America to pursue further studies, and remained in communication as often as the hectic life of North America would permit.
However, over the past ten years the fraternal relations have been rekindled and grown even stronger as we have visited each other regularly in Phoenix, New York, Abuja, and Accra. These rendezvous were always fond occasions to catch up and reminisce about ‘the good old days’ in Ghana. It is painful to know that I will no longer have the pleasure of sharing those happy moments with Victor again as death has laid its icy hands on him.
Victor left behind a legacy we should all celebrate. He came to America to seek academic laurels. He exceeded all expectations by attaining tenured professorship and becoming one of the leading experts in his field of Tourism Studies. Victor’s classes at ASU were always oversubscribed, his classes were popular as he was an accomplished lecturer admired by his students and respected by his peers. He was always professional, disciplined, research-oriented and highly knowledgeable in his image. He cut an impressive image for Africans and Americans of Color by the high standards he set himself and lived by.
On a visit to me in Abuja, Nigeria where I was President of the ECOWAS Commission, he undertook to formulate a sub-regional tourism policy for West Africa. He spent his two-week vacation doing so and bequeathed to ECOWAS its current framework for harmonization and cooperation in the tourism industry.
Victor was also mindful of his ‘giving back’ to his native country, Ghana. In that regard, he made an invaluable contribution to the Ministry of Tourism of Ghana in its infancy and to the formulation of the country’s tourism policy. Additionally, he was instrumental in the establishment of the undergraduate, and especially, the graduate program in Tourism at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He was, in fact, in the process of setting up similar programs at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) Accra, Ghana when he suddenly took ill and had to be medically evacuated to the United States. Even as he underwent medical treatment, he kept looking forward to when he would go back to Ghana to realize this last dream of his at GIMPA. Talk of commitment and dedication to study.
As a person, Victor was charming, affable, easygoing and a pleasure to be with. He was a good man; an honest man of integrity who could be counted upon. Victor was a loyal and trusted friend I shall dearly miss. In Yuma, I introduced him to my brother Dr Alhaji Adam Tahiru who is with you today on my behalf and they became intimate friends.
As we mourn his tragic passing away, I wish to express my deepest condolences to his immediate and extended family for such an irreparable loss. Our thoughts are with them at this moment of grief and sorrow. My condolences also go to the Elders and members of the Ghanaian community of Phoenix of which he was an eminent and illustrious role model for many years. I also commiserate with the ASU community for the loss of a distinguished professor who rendered meritorious service to the University in diverse ways over the years.
May God give us all the courage and strength to bear the painful loss, for indeed we have lost a loving husband, a caring father, an adoring colleague, a trusted friend, an excellent scholar and a proud son of Ghana and Africa.
May God grant him eternal rest.
Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas

Special Representative of the UN Secretary General,
Head of the UN Office for West Africa
Dakar, Senegal.
West Africa

Condolence: Dear Tara,
Why do you have to leave so soon.
Praying for your soul.You peaceful and humble gentleman. May the good Lord mercifully receive you into eternity.Rest In Peace my friend.
ITU WOOD,ACCRA

Condolence: “Victor Teye is truly one of a kind. There aren’t many people on this planet who are as graceful, kind, selfless, full of integrity and completely awesome as Victor B. Teye. Those of us who were honored to know him and graced by his presence in our lives will forever remember this kind gentleman. He was one of the first Africanists and African-Americans in the field of tourism studies, a pioneer and absolute trendsetter. He was a prolific social scientist, who helped the academic community understand the effects of poverty, underdevelopment and political instability not only on the flow of global travelers, but also on the wellbeing of communities everywhere. His research record and academic prowess were extremely influential, and he developed a serious following of devoted admirers throughout his illustrious academic career. Dr. Teye’s devotion to students was unmatched. He absolutely adored teaching and sharing his wealth of knowledge. From a workplace perspective, he lived for his students, and his greatest pleasure was teaching them about the world around them, guiding them to unforgettable places and life-changing experiences. This exemplary teacher and mentor devoted his entire self to teaching, and thousands upon thousands of former students will forever be blessed by having known him. Indeed, his academic and personal legacy will live on for generations to come. He was a consummate teacher, scholar, colleague and friend. Working with Dr. Teye was the privilege of a lifetime. We are grateful for his lasting influence in the School of Community Resources and Development and Arizona State University. We are honored to have called him one of our own, and we will miss him tremendously. On behalf of the faculty in the School of Community Resources and Development, Arizona State University (ASU) Dallen J. Timothy (collrague, Friend and “Brother from another Mother”