S42 Maryanne Oketch

[Whimsy]

CBS bio

Name: Maryanne Oketch
Age: 24
Hometown: Ajax, Ontario
Current Residence: Ajax, Ontario
Occupation: Seminary Student

Favorite Hobbies: Tabletop / video games, reading and snowboarding

3 Words to Describe You: Energetic, empathetic, and chaotic

Pet Peeve: When people don’t listen to me, people who walk slowly in front of me, anything that disrupts my sleep, hypocrites, and people who don’t apologize.

What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Writing an article for my school newspaper that led to me being invited to consult with my university’s Equity and Inclusion officer on creating a better framework and support for Black students at McMaster University. Being able to use my voice for change that not only benefitted me was so empowering.

What is something we would never know from looking at you? I am a great listener! Just because I talk a lot, it does not mean I am not listening. People are so used to hearing me when I am there, so when I am quiet, people usually don’t think I’m there and I can take notice on what they are saying. Also, I check in on people and let them vent to me, which gives me more context about them that can help guide my future decisions.

Who is your hero and why? My hero is my mother. She was born into poverty in a village in Kenya as the youngest of five. My mother is so hardworking and managed to get herself out of poverty and became a doctor in Kenya and was able to provide for her mom. She then gave that all up to support my father’s dreams, but then became a doctor in Canada while having three young children while dealing with the systemic racism in academic medicine. My mom sacrificed and worked so hard to give her family a better life and never faltered from her dreams. I aspire to be like her. She changed my life.

Which past Survivor will you play the game most like? Davie. Davie was someone who had loyalty to many people, had a strong core alliance and was social. Not only that but he was able to find idols and win challenges and play idols correctly to further his game. But most of all, Davie had so much fun when he was on the island, no matter if he was on the top or bottom of his tribe. Davie had the path to 6th place, and I will perfect it to 1st.

Why do you believe you can be the Sole Survivor? I believe I will win SURVIVOR because I am a social person, and SURVIVOR at its core is a numbers game. I have lived in diverse cities and also been in situations where I was the only black person. But in every situation, I thrived and SURVIVOR is another place where my resilience and personality will shine. Also, I never go down without a fight. When all hope is lost, I will be searching for idols, talking to people, and convincing them that me staying is best for everyone. I am going on SURVIVOR to win and I will do everything in my power to do so.

 

[LadyChatts]

She’s sweet, but not sure she’s tough enough for what’s to come in this game.  Jackson hadn’t even gotten two words out about his leaving before she lost it.  

[Kenzie]

1 hour ago, LadyChatts said:

She’s sweet, but not sure she’s tough enough for what’s to come in this game.  Jackson hadn’t even gotten two words out about his leaving before she lost it.  

Holy Moley, she reacted like he had just been murdered in front of her eyes. My cat jumped off my lap. 🙀

[LadyChatts]

MaryAnne's interview:

https://ew.com/tv/survivor-42-maryanne-oketch-winner-finale-interview/

-She has a boyfriend (no, not Zach).  I actually forgot about her little crush on him.  Here's the story (kind of cute):

Quote

Are you going to use your prize money to pay for your marriage to Zach?

[Laughs] So Zach is a very sweet person. Um, we are just friends, but coincidentally, because that aired with Zach, that actually led into me meeting my boyfriend because he reached out. So I guess I have to thank Zach about that. It's a new relationship, so I think it's a little too far ahead to thinking about that so no, the winnings will not be paying for any wedding.

So someone reached out to you after that episode aired and you're now dating that person?

After the episode aired, there was someone who reached out to me. He reached out before kind of, but nothing happened. And after I confessed my love for skinny white guys, he reached out again. He was more personable, so we got to chatting and then, you know, we basically started talking and we never stopped and he actually was here for the finale party. So he got to experience that with me.

-She felt she had better odds against Mike than Jonathan, but started wavering because everyone kept talking to Mike over her and Romeo.  She did feel she was able to articulate her game and get the jury over to her side.  Also feels like showing them her idol and her logic behind keeping it a secret and not playing it for Lindsay worked in her favor

-Was surprised she got Rocksroy's vote

-Wasn't sure if Mike would really play his idol for her, as she recognized that Mike wasn't a man of his word.  But said it was okay, she always had a plan b.  She had a big speech planned to call him out if he didn't play it for her, and then would have played hers.  Did really think about playing it for Lindsay, too.

-She felt like Lindsay got lucky in this game a lot (Tori's shot in the dark failing, not going out because of Do or Die), and thought keeping her safe by playing the idol would actually make Lindsay look good and be more lucky (that she got someone to play an idol for her when she didn't even know they had an idol)

-Confirms what Lindsay said about Jeff trying to wrap up tribal council, and that she hadn't shown her idol yet

-Calls Tori her island bestie and wishes they had shown more of their relationship together.  Also says that no one was talking to her, Tori, Chanelle, or Romeo at the fake merge

-Said she might play Survivor in 5 or 10 years, but obviously isn't as anxious to go back as everyone else

Here's more about her moment showing the jury her idol and why she thought it made an impact:

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What was it like waiting for just the right opening from the jury to take out the idol and surprise them with that move?

I was really just waiting for a good question because look, of course I wanted to be like, "I have an idol!" But even with an idol, even at final Tribal, you have one shot to let someone know, and you have all the power. So I was really just waiting for a moment when it would come. It didn't come in the first stages. I felt this would come when Jeff was giving us the time to talk about our strategic avenue.

But then I kind of had the sense that final Tribal was wrapping up when we were asked about our big moves, and I was like, "Okay, let me just lay it all out there my game plan from final six onwards, and explain how the idol goes and puts that key into what my game was."

Because on the island, I really didn't talk a lot of strategy with a lot of people, because in the beginning of the game I talked strategy. Then five minutes later, it came back to me what I said to someone. I was really cerebral, especially in the end of the game. So being able to go and verbalize about the idol and verbalize that it's not just the idol that I was talking about. I was always thinking, and this is what I was thinking — and the moment was there.