Her Richland 2 school couldn’t be prouder, despite a short reign
Friday night, Cheryl Guy went into Final Jeopardy in the lead and was feeling very good about the final topic, European countries, and the answer: “Once the Center of an Empire, it didn’t exist as an independent nation from 1938 to 1955.”
“I taught geography, so I bet big,” Guy said Friday after the Jeopardy! broadcast. The correct answer was just there at the edge of her mind but wouldn’t come. She wrote down Poland, but the correct question was, “What is Austria.”
Regrets about losing Friday after being Thursday night’s winner? Not at all.
“It was my goal to get on the show, so it was a dream come true, and then to win a night was icing on the cake,” she said.
Westwood High students and faculty saw Guy off in grand style when she headed to Burbank, Calif., to compete on the game show last September.
The “Queen” as she is known affectionately at Westwood, dethroned the reigning champ on Thursday night’s broadcast by answering the final Jeopardy answer with the correct question: “Unlike newer Bibles, the King James Version usually translates pneuma hagion as this, which can lead to unnerving images.”
“What is Holy Ghost?” answered Guy, wagering $10,000 and bringing her total to $20,600. Her two opponents got that question wrong.
But the lasting treat may be making contact with many people she has lost tract of over the years.
“I have heard from former students and friends who have contacted me through Facebook,” she said.
“I achieved what I wanted to do, to be invited to come on the show, to hear Johnny Gilbert read my name, and to meet Alex Trebek,” Guy said.
Now, she’s in search of another goal to put on her “bucket list.”
Thursday night, Guy joined a big boisterous watch party with more than 100 friends, colleagues and close family at Columbia Country Club in Blythewood.
@EducationSC @RichlandTwo @Jeopardy congratulations Cheryl. Way to go and way to represent Richland Two
— Jeannie Breeden (@Breeden1J) January 13, 2017
The graduate of the University of South Carolina and has been in education for 31 years, according to her website. A lifelong fan of the show, Guy has auditioned on and off for 30 years.
This story was originally published January 13, 2017 at 8:36 PM with the headline "Her Richland 2 school couldn’t be prouder, despite a short reign."