Leonard & Tanya: A love that endures
A true Chicago native, Leonard Lewis was born on June 4, 1954, in Cook County Hospital, and was raised on the city’s South Side. After experiencing years of abuse in the foster care system, Leonard moved in with a close friend and mentor of his in Springfield, IL.
As fate would have it, Springfield is where he met a young Tanya Baylock at 17 years old. They married just a year later and committed to raising Tanya’s two daughters together. Their relationship continued through Leonard’s eight years of military service in Fort Leonard Wood, Kansas, as well as several years of his incarceration.
But, in 1999, during Leonard’s incarceration and after some years of strain, Tanya ultimately filed for divorce. Despite their separation, though, they remained in communication, supporting one another through grief, loss, and more over the course of two decades. In 2019, Leonard proposed to Tanya once more, and they plan to be married again soon.
In January 2024, a new sentencing credit law, HB3026, was enacted in Illinois. Under this new law, Leonard became eligible to be released, and he came home after 34 years in prison.
Today, Leonard and Tanya are busy creating a new life together. They spend their days working out at the local YMCA, shopping for swanky new clothes, and going out dancing.
