Tonya Wheeler, CPFS

Tonya Wheeler is a founding board member of Advocates for Recovery Colorado. Tonya has been engaged with Advocates for Recovery Colorado since its inception in 2001 and was named the organization’s first Executive Director in 2009. Tonya is currently certified as a Colorado Peer & Family Specialist in Colorado, and she previously worked as a Certified Addictions Counselor - Level III (CAC III) in the state. She was a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC) in Texas where she began working in the substance use disorder field in 1992. Tonya is a past Board Member for Faces & Voices of Recovery in Washington, D.C. and where she served from 2008-2015.

Tonya is a woman living in active and sustained recovery since 1990, and her passion for helping others has remained evident in her work in recovery and advocacy. She works diligently in her community to share the message that recovery is a positive, attainable goal and she is an example that recovery does happen!

Tonya is a sought-after trainer and speaker across Colorado and the United States. Tonya has shared her personal recovery story with many audiences and media across Colorado and the nation. Tonya received the “Vernon Johnson Award” for being a National Recovery Advocate, presented by Faces and Voices of Recovery in June 2018. Additionally, she received the award for “Community Recovery Beacon” in 2016 and the “Founders Award” presented by Peer Assistance Services in 2014. Tonya is one of the authors of the book, “The Methamphetamine Crisis: Strategies to Save Addicts, Families and Communities”, published in 2007.