An only child born July 12, 1958, in London, England, to Jamaican parents, Tonya emigrated to Canada when she was 12 years old.  She started ballet at 3 years old, piano at 5 years old, won the Miss Junior Personality when she was 14 years old in 1973, was Oshawa's Miss Fiesta, won the Boogie dance contest and was crowned Miss Black Ontario all between 1976-1977.  She burst onto our screens in 1976 with a slew of commercials, including the national Wear a Moustache Milk campaign, which put her in the national spotlight. She was then accepted into the Ryerson Drama Program. By 1985, she was one of the CTV stars of the sitcom Check it Out; by 1990, she was in Hollywood starring in The Young and The Restless, garnering international attention.

 

Now named 2024 100 Most Influential Black Canadians for three years in a row and Emmy nominated, she is the 2024 Canadian Screen Awards Changemaker Recipient, the 2023 Visionary Award Recipient of the Legacy Awards and Playbacks 2021 Changemaker of the Year. She is an award-winning actress and producer who has worked in the industry for the last 50 years.  She is widely known for her 19 years starring on The Y&R as Dr. Olivia Winters.  She is also the Founder and Executive Director of the Reelworld Screen Institute, Reelworld Film Festival+Summit and the Reelworld Foundation. Tonya founded Reelworld in 2000 to address the lack of opportunities, access, and inclusion in Canada for Black, Indigenous, Asian and People of Colour in the screen industries.  

Tonya currently sits on a number of boards, including the Canadian Artists Network, and is a co-founder and served as a board member of the Black Screen Office for its first two years. She also sits on the Telefilm Diversity & Inclusion Group, the Telefilm Authentic Storytelling sub-committee, the Canadian Media Fund Racialized Advisory Group, the Ontario Creates Advisory Industry Committee, the Canadian Creative Industries Coalitions Group and the Canadian Racial Screen Leaders Collective. 

Tonya has won numerous awards including two NAACP Image Awards, an ACTRA Award of Excellence, a WIFT-T Crystal Award, a Harry Jerome Award and was nominated twice for the Daytime Emmy Awards.   What has always driven her in front of and behind the screen is her desire to shatter negative racial stereotypes.  She has always been a passionate Canadian, working tirelessly to create opportunities for others. A UK, Canadian and US Citizen, Tonya, now 66 years old, has been an outspoken advocate for racial diversity and equity all of her life.