Anticipation ran high among students and staff on the night of March 4 as Wenatchee High School’s Assistant Principal Dave Perkins played an aggressive and grueling game of Jeopardy. A smiling Perkins walked away with a little heavier of a pocket, and an overwhelming feeling of excitement from having accomplished a life goal.

Perkins led most of the game until the very end, when he wagered $7,000 and fell out of first place. Laura Lorson took the win, with a very strategically generated bet of $0.

“I figured [Alvin Chin] was going to double, that’s what I predicted,” Perkins said. “[Lorson] could have bet $5,400 and would have ended up with $6,000, so she would have had to bet anywhere between $0 to $5,400 to win.”

Read about Perkins’ preparations for the game show.

Perkins walked away with roughly $1,000 and plans to use his prize money to pay for a spring break trip to Phoenix.

“I gained much more than I lost from this experience,” Perkins said. He explained that he was relentless to get on the show for six to seven years, and now that he finally got the opportunity, he feels a sense of liberation.

Being a newcomer to television would be nerve wracking for most, but according to Perkins, the set crew was accommodating. He was at the studio from the start of the day to the end getting time to meet the other contestants and relax.

“I wouldn’t say nervous is the correct word, more like excited,” Perkins said when asked about meeting the host, Alex Trebek.

Perkins explained how the participants don’t experience much one-on-one time with the host, only around 10 minutes to take a picture.

“I just got really focused and in my zone,” Perkins said. The audience and thousands of people watching at home seemed to have no effect on him, due to Perkins’ the lead for most of the game.

Having roughly seven percent tax deducted for California income tax and federal tax deductions being around 10 percent minimum, Perkins suspects about $340 was taken out of his winnings.

“The satisfaction of accomplishing a goal” is something Perkins took away, along with the money throughout this experience. “The satisfaction of never having to try and get back on the show,” Perkins said, “I can be done with it and get my life back.”