Gordon Students Compete on Family Feud

By Chris O’Connell ‘13

   Name a Gordon family that recently won the game show “Family Feud.” Survey said: the Coker family.

   Gordon students Hala Coker ’12, Hattie Coker ‘13, alumni Hannah Coker ‘10 and cousins Alessio Tranchell ’14, and Clark University student Amira Tranchell ‘12, won the chance to fly to Atlanta and compete on one of America’s most well-known game shows.

   “Family Feud”, a popular game show that first aired in 1976, pits two families against each other in a question style format. Opposing contestants race to hit a buzzer and answer questions like, “Name something a magician would need to take out his pants before sending them to the dry cleaners.” Correct answers are determined by how a survey of 100 people answered the same question.

   The Cokers found out about auditions when Hattie Coker saw on Twitter that auditions were being held at the Bernie and Phyl’s furniture store in Saugus, Mass on May 14 of this year. The Coker’s had watched “Family Feud” since they were kids. They decided it would be an opportunity they couldn’t pass up.

   “It was like living out a dream,” said Alessio.

   After competing all day and winning a tryout match against another family, the Coker family had one obvious advantage over the other competitors.

   “They loved us because we were so young,” said Hala.

   “Before we knew it we were meeting with the executive producers who were falling in love with us,” said Hattie.

   On May 28 they received a postcard from the producers. The Coker’s were going to compete on “Family Feud.”

   The network gave the Coker’s an all-expense paid trip to Atlanta for three days of competition. The Coker’s flew down on July 12. On July 13 they filmed all four episodes defeating three families, losing to a fourth and coming away with $21,430 in cash. On July 14 they flew back home.

   “The whole experience was surreal,” said Hala.

   When the Coker’s arrived, they had no idea what to expect. But the staff and host Steve Harvey made it a fun time.

   “Everyone there, including Steve, was so encouraging,” said Alessio.

   In between commercial breaks the Coker’s would get cups of water and pep talks from a personal game coach who helped them stay positive.

   “I never thought that the people would be so nice,” said Hala. She also remembered Harvey giving them advice and telling them, “Alright let’s win some money, you guys are college kids, you got bills.”

   The Coker’s won the first round but failed to win fast money. Winning the game only gets the contestants around $500. Fast money, the final round, is where the real money lies. If they win they get $20,000. The Coker’s pulled this off on their second taped show. Alessio and Hala both competed on fast money and with their combined answers, won.

   “I was completely in the moment, not even thinking about the money,” said Alessio, “and then I was like ‘Oh my gosh, did we just win $20,000?’”

   “Hattie screamed for ten minutes straight.”

   The Coker’s won against the third family they faced but failed to take fast money again. Despite not winning fast money the Coker family seemed unstoppable.

   “We were definitely in it to win,” said Alessio.

   But their streak came to an end against the fourth family.

   “That was our fourth game of the day and we were tired,” said Alessio. “It was completely heartbreaking.”

   “If we had won the fifth game we would have won the car,” said Hala. “We could taste it.”

   Despite being sent home without the grand prize, the Coker kids received $4,286 each. Even though their streak came to an end, the Coker kids are happy with the time they got to spend together and the fun they had.

   “Although it was obviously exciting to win the money, I think we are all just happy that we got to experience it together, as a family,” said Hattie. “It’s definitely a memory we will all cherish forever.”