Ferris High School graduate to make appearance next month on ‘Let’s Make a Deal’

A Ferris High School graduate checking off one of her bucket list items will appear next month as a contestant on the CBS show “Let’s Make a Deal.”

College student Alyssa Waggoner, 21, will appear as a contestant on March 20. She decided to buy a ticket to the show taped in the Los Angeles area while in San Diego studying for a nursing degree. Waggoner appears in the game’s “Deals and Zonks!”

“I’m a senior in college and I had some bucket lists of things I want to do here,” Waggoner said in a phone interview. “Going on a TV show like ‘Let’s Make a Deal’ was on that list. I’m graduating in May, so I thought this is toward the end of my college time. I got tickets and got on the show.”

Spending some time with host Wayne Brady was a highlight.

“I really didn’t know what to expect. We came in and got seated, and we got the big name tags on. It was fun and everyone was upbeat. Meeting Wayne Brady was cool; he’s really funny. I think he had put out an album, so he was talking about the music. He didn’t sing for us, unfortunately.”

Most of her family lives in Spokane, she said, including her grandparents, parents and siblings. She is getting her degree at Point Loma Nazarene University, so she drove north to the show’s taping.

Waggoner said she had watched the show only a few times while growing up.

“I used to come home from school and it was on,” she said. “I’ve seen a few episodes. I had a decent idea of what to do, but he explains it on the show so it was nice. Wayne Brady helps out all the contestants.”

While she can’t talk yet about results, she said the experience stands out for its college student, toga-wearing filled audience. Waggoner even donned a toga and flower laurel on her head. College toga parties go back to the 1950s, but the Greek-themed parties gained widespread popularity after the 1978 film “Animal House.”