Tanya Vanesse not only beat out competitors half her age to make it onto “Fear factor Live,” but she won the entire competition!

At the next session of LA Senior College’s Food for Thought luncheon on Friday, March 10, Auburn School Department Computer Technician Tanya Vanesse will present a program called “My Fear Factor Live Reality TV Experience,” in which she will discuss her recent appearance in the studio version of “Fear Factor Live” at Universal Studios.

Vanesse thought the odds were against her when, as a 38-year-old mom, she found herself trying out for the show against 20-year-old military enlistees and other much-younger participants. Much to her surprise, however, not only did she make it onto the show, but she won the competition. In her program, she will share what was going through her mind during such ordeals as “The Endurance Hang,” “The Walk of Shame,” “The Swinging Pendulum Octopus Throw,” and “The Stuntman’s Challenge.”

Vanesse strives to be a role model for her son and to instill in him the attitude that it is never too late to finish something you’ve started. Along those lines, she returned to college full-time in 2014 to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Social and Behavioral Science from USM while working two part-time jobs and being a full-time single Mom. While she has lived in several states and traveled abroad through school, she has always returned to Maine. She is excited to talk about her experience and the inspiration she continues to derive from having taken a chance to participate in this unusual and challenging event.

Senior College, now in its 19th year, presents this monthly luncheon program that is open to the public in Function Room 170 at USM’s Lewiston-Auburn College. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. and the program begins promptly at noon. The cost, which includes lunch, is $7 with an advance reservation or $8 at the door. To make your advance reservation, call Senior College at 753-6510 by noon on Wednesday, March 8. Reservation calls received after this time will be considered “at the door.”