St. Ed grad wins on Wheel of Fortune

Once you leave Wheel of Fortune, you can never go back.
Torie Theriot, a former resident of Eunice and recent Wheel of Fortune contestant said, “It’s one time only (to be a contestant). The cliche of once in a lifetime applies, but I’m still excited I got to experience being on the show.”
Theriot was born in Lafayette, and her parents, Jesse and Maria Viator, moved to Eunice when she was in the sixth grade. She attended St. Edmund and graduated from the school in 2002. Theriot is married to Blake Theriot of Lafayette, and her parents have since moved back to Lafayette.
The lawyer, an associate at Neuner Pate Attorneys at Law, began watching the show with her grandmother when she was still in diapers.
“I watched it a lot during the summer months,” Theriot said. “I stayed at my grandmother’s with lots of my other cousins. My grandparents watched the show religiously. In the last few years, I got married, and it’s become routine at our house. We watch it after the news or while we’re cooking supper.”
Theriot first filled out an entry form on line for the show and submitted a 30 second video on why she thought she should be on the show. Two weeks later, she received a letter in the mail saying that she has been selected for an audition in New Orleans, and after auditioning with 50 other hopefuls, Theriot was notified via email that she had been selected to appear on the show. She would have two week’s notice before she would need to fly to Los Angeles for filming in July.
“Me, my husband, my brother and my parents all flew out,” Theriot said. “We made it sort of a family trip.”
On the day Theriot filmed, she recognized another Lafayette woman on set who had been at the New Orleans audition.
“They filmed six episodes in one day,” she added.
Theriot’s episode aired Oct. 5, and the contestant came out second in the competition.
Theriot came back to Louisiana with about $8,000 in prizes with a trip to Barbados and another $9,000 in cash. She also walked away with an experience she will never forget.
“It was great to see an actual show in person,” she said. “I got to film with 18 other contestants that day. It was great to meet others from all different walks of life from all over the United States and hear their dreams of what they would do with the money if they won the show. It was inspiring, and it was great to see the studio and meet Pat and Vanna.”
She added, “I’d like to say ‘Thank you’ to my two English teachers at St. Ed. They probably aren’t even there anymore. St. Ed had some great English teachers.”