Tanya Dewitt, daughter of the late Leroy Dewitt and Minister Daisy B. Rice, was born on December 22, 1964, at Morrisania Hospital in the Bronx, New York. She departed this life on September 12, 2022, at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

During her early years, Tanya's foundation began in church, guided by her parents, who were very active in the church. Only a month old, she was Christened at Saint Luke's Episcopal Church on 222nd Street. At the tender age of six, she became active in the Children's Choir at the First Church of Deliverance located at 3752 Third Avenue, Bronx, NY. Tanya was later baptized in 1983 at 19, along with her siblings.

Growing up, Tanya and her family lived in several areas of the Bronx. At the age of nine, she indicated in an essay that one of her favorite residences was the house on the rocks at 2111 Lafontaine Avenue. In 1975, Tanya and her family moved to 1199 Plaza in Harlem. Tanya once said, "We're movin' on up" like The Jeffersons. Harlem is where she lived the rest of her life, raising her three Queens, her Princesses, and Princes.

She received her education within the New York City Public School System, one of the schools being P.S. 146 in the Bronx. She also attended P.S. 102 and J.H.S. 99 in Manhattan, NY. In 1985, she received her High School Diploma from Park East High School, which she enjoyed attending. At Park East, a couple of her friends, Dougie Fresh and Teddy Riley, became celebrities.

Tanya started working at 14; she would spend her summers in Dunbar, South Carolina, with her maternal grandparents working in the tobacco fields from sun up until sundown. She Hated It! She started gainful employment in 1979 at 15 as a junior counselor. From there on, she has worked various jobs. She worked at Sylvia's The Queen of Soul Food from 2001-2003. During that time, she also began employment at The Board of Education City of New York in April of 2001 as a Food and Nutrition Server. She resigned from her position in August of 2017.

To cherish her memories, Tanya leaves three daughters: Latanya E. (Guy) DeWitt, Kalima T. DeWitt, and Ty-Jia O. Peterson; her siblings: Kenneth (Cheryl) Grate Sr., Tavia C. (Gaery) Chambers of Hackensack, NJ, Billy B. (Martina) Cherry II of White Plains, NY, and Leroy DeWitt; four grandchildren: Avyonnia D. Bias-DeWitt, Dasani J. DeWitt-Burris, James DeWitt-Burris, and Ta'Nya B. Lowery; three nieces: Shaundrika D. DeWitt, Kaylah J. Grate, and Charlotte D. Cherry; five nephews: Emil A. Hanna, Alonzo L. Hanna, Kenneth Grate Jr., Korey Grate, and Ronald Knight Jr.; one grandniece, Camryn Grate; two grandnephews, Omari Grate, and Zyon Dior Dewitt; one special Ride-or-Die friend/cousin, Lisa Graves; and a host of aunts, uncles, cousins, relatives, and friends.

MAY HER SOUL REST IN PEACE.

WE LOVE YOU.