Survivor Star Maryanne Oketch’s Biggest Triumph Is Accepting Herself

Trials To Triumphs

She won one of the most challenging reality TV shows, but her biggest victory was learning to love and accept her “weird” self. In this uplifting interview, Maryanne shares with Ashley how being an outsider has elevated her purpose in the long haul. The challenges she faced growing up as an immigrant taught her to take risks and to “show up” as her true self. As only the second Black woman to win Survivor in the show’s 42 seasons, Maryanne acknowledges that she gained something more valuable than a million dollars: a global platform to help break racist social patterns. Maryanne confesses that she had no intention of winning and instead saw Survivor as an opportunity “to inspire others” to “find their solid ground.”