Mrs. Tonya "Nana" Lynn (Johnson) Curry

Tonya Curry was born in the town of Mason, Michigan on November 8th in 1951. She was the first daughter of Barbara and Robert Johnson.

Tonya Curry grew up with her two younger sisters and two brothers; Debra, Renée, Rich, and Doug. As the older sister, she was always looking out for and taking care of them. She loved spending time with her mom cooking and listening to music with her dad.

Tonya met her husband, Gary Curry when she was only 13 years old. She would often recount to us how she saw him from her seat on the bus and knew he was the one. It wasn't long before they were dating and married only a few years later. They had three beautiful children; their oldest daughter Barbra, their middle son Gary Jr, and their youngest son Jesse.

The kids grew up in Michigan until Tonya and Gary decided to move to Sarasota, Florida in 1986. Here is also when Gary founded Roofing by Curry to provide for his family and Tonya started a daycare.

Tonya has always had boundless love for children and she was so happy when she met her first grandson, Adam, from her daughter Barbra. Grandchildren quickly became the center of her life as Jordan and Alexandria were born a few years later from her son, Gary. The next grandchild was Jesse Jr from her son Jesse followed by another daughter, Kori, from Barbra. Her son Gary then had another daughter, MacKenzie, a son, Tyler, and one more daughter, Mia. Her son Jesse also had another daughter named Tiana. Tonya took the brother and sister of Mia: Samantha, and Michael, as well as Tyler's brother Ashton under her wing as grandchildren. Tonya was overjoyed to meet her first great-granddaughter, Rhea, from Jordan, in 2019.

Tonya enjoyed working on arts and crafts with the grandchildren. She would teach them how to color, how to paint, and how to decorate. They would frequent Michaels, Target, and the Westfield mall for art supplies, decorations, and pool toys. Tonya loved having all of the grandchildren over to enjoy the pool and would make grilled cheeses, pigs in a blanket, hot dogs, and or pizza for them once they got out. Movie nights were also common as all of the grandkids sat in the living room together. These are the days Tonya would say she looked back upon very fondly.

Tonya also had a love of animals. She would feed squirrels and birds in the neighborhood as well as local raccoons, opossums, and stray cats. In her home, she has had many cats including Tigger, Mortimer, Shadow, Missy, Puppy, Chip, Baby, Waffles, Pancakes, and Oreo.

Tonya appreciated the simple life which meant farms, flowers, and cottages. Notably, her favorite flowers were sunflowers and she loved seeing red cardinals as they reminded her of her mother. Beautiful sunflowers and cardinals adorned her home at all times.

Despite her sweet love of critters, she also greatly enjoyed cars, an interest shared by her husband and her father. She loved her sporty red CTSV Cadillac and would happily rev the engines whenever she could.

Tonya would consistently put together elaborate holiday celebrations because having the family together in this magical way was so important to her. She would decorate the house to meticulous degrees during Christmas, cook large Thanksgiving dinners, and adorn the house in fall decor and hand out candy for Halloween. She also enjoyed the 4th of July and fireworks as it was also her son Gary's birthday.

Tonya had a strong faith in the Lord that she and Gary continued to strengthen as they experienced life together. She was always willing to give her worries to the Lord and cared greatly about her family having a relationship with Jesus.

Tonya Curry is preceded by her mother, Barbara Johnson, her brother, Doug Johnson, and her son, Gary Jr.

She is survived by her loving husband Gary Curry, her daughter Barbra Curry, her son Jesse Curry, her grandchildren Adam Southcott, Jordan Curry, Alexandria Curry, Jesse Curry Jr, Kori Southcott, Mckenzie Curry, Samatha Estes, Tyler Curry, Mia Estes, Michael Estes, Tiana Curry, Ashton Cates, and her great-grandchild Rhea Curry.

A funeral service for Tonya will be held Saturday, September 11, 2021 at 2:30 PM at Robert Toale and Sons Funeral Home at Palms Memorial Park, 170 Honore Ave, Sarasota, FL 34232. A graveside service will occur Saturday, September 11, 2021 at 3:30 PM at Palms Memorial Park, 170 Honore Ave, Sarasota, FL 34232. A gathering will occur Saturday, September 11, 2021 from 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM, 170 Honore Ave, Sarasota, FL 34232.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.palmsrobartsfuneralhome.com for the Curry family.