This information was provided by Cathy (Frontiero) Spiro
At the urging of my aunts Mary Scola and Vincie (Scola) Gounaris, and my sister Josie (Frontiero) Palazola, I wrote this piece to express my thanks and appreciation to all the Cape Ann friends and family of fans who viewed and rooted for Mike and Sam during the eight NBC “Love In The Wild” episodes that aired on Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. from June 29 to Aug. 17, 2011, where Mike and Samantha met, partnered up for seven of the eight challenges, and went on to win the grand prize trip around the world. Congratulations to them! Here is some personal information that your readers may enjoy.
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Michael Spiro and his contestant partner Samantha Woods won the first ever “Love in the Wild” prize, a trip around the world, after winning a water adventure in the show’s season finale on Wednesday, Aug. 17.
Although Mike is not a Gloucester native, his mom, Cathy Frontiero Spiro, is from the “Fort,” so the connection is through her. Not only did they win the grand prize trip, but they have also found love. Mike and Sam are still seeing each other, have met one another’s parents, and are planning for a well-deserved opportunity of a lifetime – -their trip around the world together.
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Mike Spiro was born and raised in the Santa Clarita Valley, 35 miles north of Los Angeles, Calif., and went to Cal Berkeley where he was a member of Chi Phi fraternity and was awarded a degree in architecture. He is a vice-president of a San Francisco commercial real estate development company with several other partners. Samantha Woods is a Southern California Orange County native who attended Chapman University and majored in communications and public relations and is a wedding planner in the Southern California area.
The two formed a strong bond from the very first show when she selected him to be her partner for their first challenge because of what he said, “that brains and brawn would be needed to be a winner.” Together they won the first “air” challenge and the prize – a night in the Oasis, the luxurious 5-star Nayara Hotel Resort Spa and Gardens, located in Costa Rica’s lush rain forest on the outskirts the active Arenal Volcano, a private retreat where they shared tropical foods and beverages, the best in accommodations, and time to get to know one another. Only the contestant pair who won the challenge on each episode could spend the night at the Oasis.
Lucky for Mike that he was a good swimmer, too, and not afraid of the water, as was his final opponent Miles Haefner from Minnesota, who with Heather Pond from California, came in a close second place runner-up. For two months prior to the show, Mike worked the gym weights room harder than usual to get in good condition to meet the show’s physical challenges: to swim in crocodile infested waters, find props in bat infested caves, run through muddy jungle and dirt paths, search for Mambo and the clue, ride a horse, row a rowboat and canoe, float on a paddle board, ride an oxcart, slide down water chutes, pitch a tent, build a fire, and use a repel line to traverse waterfalls and steep valleys – all in the Costa Rican rain forest surrounding Lake Arenal in an idyllic volcano jungle setting. Pushed to the limit both mentally and physically, these two winners won with luck and perseverance. Because they played harder, had more grit, drive and fortitude, and wanted the win more than the other contestants and most importantly, because they were lucky enough to have one another and to work well together as a team – that was the winning combination. Were they looking for love? Well, let’s just say that they kept an open mind for a romantic interlude, if it was meant to be.
They were selected to be contestants on “Love in the Wild” in a most uncanny way. Mike says that on his way home from work late one night, he stopped at a burger and beer bar near his home in the Bay area and a girl approached him and asked him if he was single. “So I’m sitting by myself drinking a beer and eating a burger and a girl comes up to me and asked if I liked wild adventures, beautiful women and exotic locations. So it was a pretty easy sell in my book. I went back, met the casting director and that was it.”
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Samantha said she “was actually working part-time at a restaurant and got approached by two captain directors. They asked if I was single. And the conversation started from there. They told me a little bit about the show and they said it was NBC. I was intrigued. And so then I went on my interview and the whole thing started from there.”
Mike and Samantha celebrated their August birthdays together. He took her to Disneyland the day after the season finale aired on Aug. 18; she went to his birthday party in San Francisco last weekend. They have established long-lasting friendships with the other contestants, especially those who lasted the longest on the show, and they still keep in contact with them.
Lest we forget, here’s kudos to the other fierce Gloucester TV reality show contestants: Jimmy T on “Survivor,” Joe, Nino and Gus Sanfilippo, the Fishermen team on “Expedition Impossible,” and Christian Collins on “MasterChef.” They were awesome. It must be that competitive spirit that drives our Gloucester folk to finish so strong.
One thing is certain. The “Mike and Samantha” couple will definitely want to visit Gloucester and the Cape Ann area to reconnect with his roots and to meet and thank everyone who was part of their fan base there, especially his great aunts, cousins, and others (Godmother Grace Miseraca, Peter Favazza, cousins Frank Frontiero, and Donny and Cathy Nicastro).
If you would like more information about the other contestants or missed an episode, you can catch up on-line at www.NBC/Love in the Wild.com, Zap2It, or go to On Demand to view any of the eight episodes. The show is currently casting for next spring’s reality adventure. Amor Salvaje!
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHO
