When Pastor Calvin Callins and his wife Dr. Tandria Callins took a trip to California for the Grammy Awards last month, they thought it would be fun to see if they could get tickets to The Price is Right.
“We always wanted to attend a show and since we were already going to be in L.A. we decided to try to get tickets,” said Tandria.
Not only did they score tickets to a Feb. 5 taping, Tandria got called to “come on down” but she had to keep the secret of how it turned out until the show aired Mar. 5. “We couldn’t say anything or we would have forfeited our winnings,” she said.
Wearing t-shirts designed by Elite Logos, they both looked the part of contestants.
A $701 bid on a set of Meyer Housewares pots and pans and year subscription of Eggland’s Best eggs won her the prize and the chance to stand next to host Drew Carey and win another prize. Her luck continued when she played Double Prices, correctly selecting the price of a trip to Vietnam valued at $12,680. “I was just screaming and jumping up and down,” said Tandria.
A spin of the big wheel landed her in the final showcase. Her showcase included a set of kitchen appliances, a trip to Playa Del Carmen and a 2024 Volkswagon Taos SUV. Her bid was $42,500. “I really thought it was $45,000 but I bid a little lower because I didn’t want to go over,” she said.
The actual cost of her showcase was $45,381. When Carey announced that the other showcase contestant went over, Tandria couldn’t believe it. “I was in shock and then when I realized what happened that’s when I ran off the stage to my husband and then we both ran and got in the car,” she said.
They almost didn’t attend the taping. “It was raining in L.A. and we weren’t going to go because the weather was so bad,” she said. “We decided to go and had to be there by 8:30 a.m., we arrived at 8:29 a.m.”
This was the couple’s second attempt to attend a show. During another trip to California, Tandria got sick and couldn’t make it.
The happy couple is ecstatic about their prizes, which will be shipped to them in the next several months. They’re already planning the trips. They’ll travel to Vietnam in Dec. to celebrate her 50th birthday. They already had a trip planned to a Sandals resort but are giving that trip to their daughter for her wedding.
Before attending the taping, Tandria told her husband that whatever she won she’d give to him, since his birthday was Feb. 3. “After I won everything, I told him he could have all the pots,” she joked.
As the chef in the family, he’s okay with that. “I don’t know what I’m going to cook first,” he said.
All kidding aside, he said he had a feeling when he walked into the theater where it was taped that they were going to call his wife’s name and she was going to win. “I’m her biggest supporter so it was awesome to let her be in the spotlight and be her cheerleader,” he said.
“It didn’t matter who got picked because we’re both winners,” said Dr. Callins.