An On-Campus Campaign Created for the

Lousiana Organ Procurement Agency

CAMPAIGN TEAM
Benjamin Gautreaux: Account Executive

Jade Williams: Chief Strategist

Caroline Jacobi: Creative Director

Kia Singleton: Digital Media Manager

Jade Gallaher: Presentation Coordinator

MACO 440, Nicholls State University

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary .......................................... 1

Client Background ............................................ 2
Situational Analysis ........................................... 3
SWOT Analysis ................................................. 4
PESO Analysis .................................................. 6
Communicative Channels ................................. 7
Partnerships ....................................................... 8
Publics & Target Audience ................................ 9
Theme and Goals ............................................ 11
Research ......................................................... 12
Implementation .............................................. 13
Social Media Plan ........................................... 17
Social Media Timeline ..................................... 19
Budget ........................................................... 21
Evaluations ...................................................... 23
Future Suggestions ........................................ 27
Appendix ........................................................ 28
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency (LOPA) was established in April

1988. According to the website, they are an independent non-profit organ
and tissue recovery agency. LOPA’s two main objectives are housing and
maintaining the Louisiana organ registry and recovering organs and tissue.
Lana Stevens, who is a community educator for LOPA, mentions three
words that describe LOPA; they are selfless, authentic and passionate.
Stevens also said LOPA works with transplant centers from out of the state
and falls under the Donate Life national organization.

Stevens said Donate Life is a collaboration of organizations that support

organ, tissue and eye donation and every state has their own chapter
of Donate Life. Donate Life Louisiana consists of organ procurement
organizations, eye banks (Southern Eye Bank; Baton Rouge Regional Eye
Bank), transplant centers (Ochsner/Tulane), the Legacy Donor Foundation,
the Louisiana Hospital Association and much more throughout the state. As
a state group, Stevens said LOPA works on national donation celebrations
such as National Donor Day, National Donate Life Month, Blue and Green
Day, National Minority Awareness month (known as ECHO), National Donor
Sabbath and more.

1
CLIENT BACKGROUND

The LOPA website states that LOPA partners with many other organizations
such as eye banks and hospitals to “Make Life Happen.” This is their
slogan that they follow by. They not only help make life happen through
organ donation, but also by helping families through the processes of
grieving.

One thing LOPA does for families to aid them during the grieving
processes is a butterfly release. This display shows a hope for the future.
More information regarding releases can be found on the website. The
organization also hosts a heroes page on their site. Here, people can
publish personal stories about donors saving lives. When families are
going through the grieving process, LOPA allows them to stay in contact
with them for as long as the families desire.

LOPA’s best year was 2019. Acadiana’s NewsChannel (KATC) reported in

an article that LOPA provided 754 organs for transplants last year. Stevens
states the number was so high due to the organization getting a new
location in Covington, having a family close to them tell their story
regarding organ donation as well as the launch of the LOPA foundation
website. The foundation page allows people to make financial donations
year-round.

2
SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS

After speaking with our client, our group has determined these four
factors are major problems of LOPA.

1. Marsh Mad Dash has hardly any college student participants even with
it being on Nicholls Campus
2. Lack of education because organ donation is not something students
think about everyday.
3. Social media because there are not enough posts or followers on all
three accounts
4. People are taking themselves off the registry due to hollywood myths
that have impacted the amount of registered donors.

3
SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS
• First student organization with ties to organ donation / LOPA
• Has a reputable back up for information (LOPA)
• Has connections and support from Nicholls and student organizations
• Education-based student organization

WEAKNESSES
• Lack of social media presence
• Lack of awareness on campus
• No funding

4
SWOT ANALYSIS

OPPORTUNITIES
• Special events
• Promotional items to giveaway
• New use of social media
• Partnerships with hospitals, private practices, schools, etc.
• On-campus news outlets
• Ties to philanthropy and community

THREATS
• Stronger student organizations
• No control of social media response
• Plenty of myths

5
PESO ANALYSIS

PAID MEDIA
• Advertisements

EARNED MEDIA
• Press releases, news stories

SHARED MEDIA
• Social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube)

OWNED MEDIA
• Website, YouTube, LOPA Foundation, brochures, powerpoints, monthly
newsletters

6
COMMUNICATIVE CHANNELS

WEBSITE
The website has information pertaining to organ donation, facts and
heroes. The hero page is where people can share their stories regarding
to organ donation. One can also find information about the foundation
and how to donate. LOPA also provides tabs where one can find
podcasts, family services, links to events and social media accounts.

SOCIAL MEDIA
On social media, LOPA posts frequently. Their posts consist of events,
donor family stories, employees, volunteers, and educational programs at
schools. They currently have about 3,430 people who like their Facebook
page and about 3,500 people who follow it. LOPA gets an average of 70
to 80 likes and shares on their Facebook posts.

On Instagram, they currently have about 1,500 followers with a range of

ten to 70 likes depending on the post.

As for Twitter, LOPA has about 2,082 followers. If there is an event or

special day LOPA recognizes, posts will range.

7
PARTNERSHIPS & EDUCATION

LOPA partners with hospitals, presents small education programs, and

puts on events like the Marsh Mad Dash, which are meant to educate,
raise money and spread awareness. To plan events, Stevens said
LOPA has seven community educators across the state broken down
into different regions. Baton Rouge and New Orleans each have two
educators she said, while Monroe, Lafayette, and Shreveport all have one
educator. New Orleans and Baton Rouge promote donation in minority
communities but not only for minority awareness.

Stevens said LOPA typically does not do any community events that
cost them anything unless there is a big return on investment. All of the
budgeting is done through the executive team.

LOPA hands out brochures and cards at community events, and they send
out a monthly newsletter to their volunteers. Nurses and doctors are also
educated using brochures and powerpoints. Stevens said LOPA uses
some forms of printed materials like flyers to spread the word of an event.

8
PUBLICS & TARGET AUDIENCE

EXTERNAL INTERNAL
• Hospitals • Donor families
• Students, faculty, and staff • Donor recipients
• DMVs • Employees of LOPA
• Reporters / Journalists
• Parents

TARGET AUDIENCE
The target audience for this campaign is students at Nicholls State
University. Our group and client decided this due to the major event of
LOPA’s (Marsh Mad Dash) being held on Nicholls campus. We also chose
this audience because it matches with LOPA’s target audience.

9
THE CAMPAIGN
CAMPAIGN GOAL & THEME

CAMPAIGN GOAL
Our overall goal of this campaign is to have an impact on the number of
organ donors at Nicholls State University and the surrounding area.

OVERALL THEME
The theme of this campaign is Colonels with Heart. We designed this
theme to help get the message of organ donation across to our fellow
students. Colonels With Heart is meant to help with the Marsh Mad Dash
and to plan events that will help educate people on organ donation.

OVERALL DESIGN
The overall design for Colonels with Heart gives the audience a
welcoming and friendly feel. Considering organ donation may be a heavy
topic, we wanted to be seen as approachable. We also kept it minimal
and professional to mainatain the credibility of LOPA. SEE APPENDIX I

11
RESEARCH

Our group conducted research and surveys on our fellow students to find
out how many of them were already donors. We surveyed a total of 254
students. Out of that 254 students, 205 of them were registered donors.
There were 131 registered female donors and 74 male students.

This research came from students who were apart of the Student
Government Association (SGA), the Student Programming Association
(SPA), Greek life, Nicholls athletics, the Veterans Organization, further clubs
and organizations, health services, and faculty.

In order to help our campaign, we did additional research. Our

research included statistics for the number of both organ donors and
people who had transplants in the state of Louisiana. The numbers are
broken down into gender, race and age group. All this information came
from the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network. SEE APPENDIX II

12
IMPLEMENTATION

1. Have an overall increase in the amount of organ

donors by 3% by December.

STRATEGY
Encourage students to become a registered donor by promoting LOPA through
social media and by hosting informational tables in the union. (See budget and plan
for tables on page 21).

TACTICS
Reserve a table through the Student Union two to three times during the semester
to offer insight on organ donation and LOPA.
• The students who register at our tables and enters Nicholls into the “other”
category will receive a sticker saying “I’m a Donor” with the LOPA logo underneath.

• Pictures will be taken to highlight the students who participated, and this will
create content for social media.

13
IMPLEMENTATION

2. To increase participation at the Marsh Mad

Dash by at least 10% by the day of the event.

STRATEGY
Share information pertaining to Marsh Mad Dash and partner with other campus
organizations to spread the word.

TACTICS
Place flyers around campus, host tables in the union to make students aware of the
event, create videos, post countdown, include facts about Marsh Mad Dash on social
media.
• Our group decided to attend the Marsh Mad Dash event and take
videos to advertise for next year’s event. SEE APPENDIX III

• We decided to create a flyer that was branded towards Nicholls and placed them
around campus (library, classrooms, union, residence halls).

• We agreed to host tables in the union with fun activities for the students to interact
with.

Due to COVID-19, the Marsh Mad Dash was cancelled a week prior to the event.

Colonels With Heart understands why the Marsh Mad Dash was cancelled. The
safety and wellbeing of their recipients are the main priority. The event has been
rescheduled over Nicholls State University’s fall break, September 26th.

14
IMPLEMENTATION

3. To have a Nicholls focused social media page

across all platforms that promotes organ
donations and have 500 followers by May.

STRATEGY
Create a Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram account for Colonels with Heart.

TACTICS
Maintain strength and consistency throughout the multiple social media pages with
colors, hashtags and branded materials

In order for students to receive a button, they have to show proof to our group
that they are following one of our social media accounts. After they follow is
when they receive a button.

Hashtags: #beadonor, #colonelswithheart, #lopa, #makelifehappen,

#geauxdonate, #liveliketillou, #tillouwithheart, #passtheheart, #loveandlife

15
IMPLEMENTATION

4. To increase LOPA’s social media followers

across all platforms by 3% by December.

STRATEGY
Promote LOPA through shared social media platforms like Colonels with Heart.

TACTICS
Sharing LOPA events, tagging LOPA in student engagement pictures, sharing posts
and videos from LOPA, and using hashtags.

At the Colonels with Heart tables, in order to receive a button or sticker,

students must show they are following one of LOPA’s social media accounts.

16
SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN

The idea behind this timeline is for Colonels with Heart to post at the times
of 8 am, 12 pm, and 6 pm. The series of posts for Colonels with Heart
consist of Memory Monday, With Heart Wednesday, and Feel Good Friday.

Memory Monday: monthly post that consists of a past experience from

LOPA

With Heart Wednesday: features Nicholls students who support Colonels

with Heart

Feel Good Friday: positive fun fact about organ donation

Along with our daily series of posts, we plan to share LOPA related
content, quotes, graphics, our tables and events, and post other things we
feel would be related to organ donation. SEE APPENDIX IV

17
SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN

SOCIAL MEDIA INTRODUCTIONS / BIOGRAPHIES

FACEBOOK
www.instagram.com/colonelswithheart/
www.twitter.com/colonels_heart

Colonels with Heart is a class campaign that supports the Louisiana Organ
Procurement Agency (LOPA). LOPA was founded in April of 1988 with the
purpose of Making Life Happen. This semester, Colonels with Heart is
teaming up with LOPA to share the love.

INSTAGRAM
@colonelswithheart
With love and life | The Nicholls Colonels + LOPA
DM Us for More Info | https://www.lopa.org/social

TWITTER
@colonelswithheart
Colonels with Heart is a class campaign that supports the Louisiana Organ
Procurement Agency (LOPA)
@LOPA_org
#LiveLikeTillou

18
SOCIAL MEDIA TIMELINE

FEBRUARY

2.15 Create social media pages

2.20 Post biographies and profile picture
2.28 First post for Marsh Mad Dash

MARCH

3.1 Create social media pages

3.4 Post biographies and profile picture
3.11 First post for Marsh Mad Dash
3.13 First Feel Good Friday post
3.16 “Good luck Colonels” post
3.20 Feel Good Friday
3.21 Original Marsh Mad Dash Day
Planned to post videos and photos during event / create Instagram
stories
3.23 Memory Monday
3.25 With Heart Wednesday
3.27 Feel Good Friday

19
SOCIAL MEDIA TIMELINE

APRIL

4.1 National Donor Month post

4.3 Feel Good Friday
4.6 “Pass the Heart“ post
4.8 With Heart Wednesday
4.10 Feel Good Friday
4.13 Memory Monday
4.15 With Heart Wednesday
4.24 Feel Good Friday

MAY

5.4 Memory Monday

5.6 With Heart Wednesday
5.8 Final presentation picture with client

20
BUDGET & TABLE PLAN

Buttons: $37.50 -- 100 buttons with the Colonels with Heart logo
Stickers: $73.43 -- 100 stickers that say “I am a donor” with the LOPA logo
Table Materials: $96.86

TOTAL SPENT: $207.79

The table was supposed to be hosted in the student union on March 16th
and 17th. Due to the Coronavirus this had to be canceled. We were going
to have buttons, stickers, and two boards. Within these boards, there was
going to be a good deal of information. We purchased all of our materials
for $96.86. One trifold board, one poster board, and various other
materials such as glitters, acrylic paints, paint brushes, etc.

On the trifold board we planned to place the name of the campaign at

the top of the board and then about ten myths about organ donation.
These myths would be placed on the board in a flip booklet fashion where
the actual facts would be placed underneath. This is a way the people
involved will become interactive with the board. The flippers were going
to be a water colored blue paper so that it would stand out on the white
board. Most of the lettering on the board would be black. On the side
panels of the board, there would be a few stories from the donors and
the other side would have a few from the recipients. There would be
information on both sides about how you can submit a story if you have
one and how you can find out more.

21
BUDGET & TABLE PLAN

The poster board would be a cut out frame for pictures to be taken with it.
It would have our “Colonels With Heart” saying on it and the LOPA logo
on it. It would be decorated with our color scheme we have developed
and possibly other things, such as other ribbons, flowers, or heart cut outs.
Nothing was definite yet since we never got to begin to work on it yet due
to the shut down at school because of the coronavirus. So we ended up
returning everything but the buttons and stickers because they were non
refundable.

22
EVALUATION

OBJECTIVE ONE

In December, have a staff member or manager look through the

registration page on the website to see how many people listed/typed
Nicholls in the “other category.” This will give an accurate number for
the increase in donors. One can also measure the change by how many
Colonels With Heart buttons and stickers get handed out because the
only way they can receive one of those items is to register.

23
EVALUATION

OBJECTIVE TWO

Being that the event was cancelled, the objective and tactics for the Marsh
Mad Dash above can still be used for the September date. To evaluate,
get the person in charge of the Marsh Mad Dash to compare the numbers
and donations to the year before. Based on last year’s data, you can also
compare the amount of runners that signed up, the amount of interactions
on social media and the amount of money that is raised. This would allow
one to see a direct change in whether or not there was an increase in
participation.

24
EVALUATION

OBJECTIVE THREE

Our group created the Colonels With Heart social media in February with
hopes of getting 500 followers by having tables in the union and other
small events. Within a month, Colonels With Heart had 17 page likes on
Facebook, on Instagram we had about 30 followers and on Twitter we had
ten followers. As of today, we currently have 79 followers on Facebook,
47 followers on Instagram and on Twitter we have 25 followers.Shortly
after the creation of these accounts,the stay at home order regarding
COVID-19 was issued. This severely limited our ability to promote social
media.

25
EVALUATION

OBJECTIVE FOUR

To evaluate this objective, LOPA’s social media manager can compare the
amount of followers on social media from June until December. LOPA
currently has about 3,431 people who like their facebook page, 1,500
followers on Instagram and 2,082 followers on Twitter. Comparing these
numbers from the month of May to the December date would be an easy
way to see if there was an increase in social media followers.

26
FUTURE SUGGESTIONS

To create a Venmo by partnering with organizations on campus like

Colonels for Life.
Organizations on campus all have a budget or some type of account. By
partnering with organizations that are related to LOPA, they can share and
raise money by creating a Venmo account. This would be an easy action to
raise more money for LOPA.

To work/redesign the website so that it is easier to navigate.

The website is full of information which is great. However, with more orga-
nization and up to date graphics, people would find it easier to navigate.

To change the name of the Marsh Mad Dash to something people and
Nicholls students will recognize.
Our group thought the name for Marsh Mad Dash doesn’t truly fit what the
run is all about. Creating a name that represents organ donation and the
recipients who participate in it would make it more recognizable.

27
THE APPENDIX
 #13171e

#8b414b
APPENDIX I

#a72c36

29
#b7595c
BRANDING BOARD

#596873

#879aaa
APPENDIX I
BRANDING BOARD

Colone rt
ls with Hea

ALTERNATE LOGOS

Colone
ls with Hea
rt
Colonels with Heart

Colonels with Heart

30
APPENDIX I
BRANDING BOARD

TYPOGRAPHY

Aurelly Signature ALT Caviar Dreams

Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg
Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo
Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss T t Uu Vv Pp Qq Rr Ss T t Uu Vv
Ww Xx Yy Zz Ww Xx Yy Zz

1234567890 1234567890

PATTERNS & TEXTURES

31
APPENDIX II
STATISTICS

32
APPENDIX III
MARSH MAD DASH CONTENT

33
APPENDIX III
PASS THE HEART VIDEO CONCEPT

The video for Marsh Mad Dash will be a promotional video that is about
30 to 45 seconds long.

The theme and title of the video is Pass The Heart. We decided on Pass
The Heart because it goes with our campaign theme and because you can
change it out to any other organ if need be.

To create this video, you will need at least three to four actors. Since this
campaign focuses on college students, it would be best to get a diverse
group of 18-24 year olds to participate.

The idea of this promotional video is to have the actors stage a relay race.
The first student will be lacing up his or her shoe when they find a cut out
of a red heart. There is nothing on the front of the heart.

That first student who finds the heart, picks it up and begins running
the relay race. Instead of passing a baton like at a regular race, that first
student passes the heart they found on the ground and gives it to the
second person.

The second person gives it to the third person and the third person gives
the red heart to the fourth. Once the fourth person receives the red heart,

34
APPENDIX III
PASS THE HEART VIDEO CONCEPT

he or she will walk up to a recipient. A local recipient would be Mary

Duplantis. Duplantis received a heart transplant in the past.

When the runner walks over to the recipient, the camera will show a quick
glimpse of the recipient’s T-shirt. The back of their T-shirt says I am a…

After the quick glimpse, the fourth runner will tap the recipient on the
shoulder. The recipient turns around and the runner hands them the
heart. The recipient turns over the red heart and it reads Recipient.
Their T-shirt says I am a… heart transplant recipient.

With three to four people as runners, that would give each of them about
six seconds of B-roll if the time for the video is 30 to 45 seconds long.

The recipient, heart, and runners are the main focus.

Throughout the video there should be music and a voice over. The voice
over could include someone like Mary Duplantis saying something like
“for some it is just a race, for others it is a race for their life.”

Once the video is completed, it can be shared on LOPA’s webpages,

YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms.

35
APPENDIX IV
SOCIAL MEDIA CALENDAR

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 2 3 4
WITH HEART FEEL GOOD
WEDNESDAY FRIDAY
POST POST

5 6 7 8 9 10 11
MEMORY WITH HEART FEEL GOOD
MONDAY WEDNESDAY FRIDAY
POST POST POST

12 13 14 15 16 17 18
MEMORY WITH HEART FEEL GOOD
MONDAY WEDNESDAY FRIDAY
POST POST POST

19 20 21 22 23 24 25
MEMORY WITH HEART FEEL GOOD
MONDAY WEDNESDAY FRIDAY
POST POST POST

26 27 28 29 30
MEMORY WITH HEART
MONDAY WEDNESDAY
POST POST

36
APPENDIX V
SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS

37
APPENDIX V
SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS

38
APPENDIX VI
BUTTONS & STICKERS

t
Colonels H ear
with

39
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
On March 9, the Louisiana Organ Procurement Agency (LOPA) teamed
up with Colonels for Life to host a guest speaker at a club meeting in Ayo
hall.

The speaker was Paul Thibodaux. Thibodaux, was born with cystic fibrosis
(CF) which is when mucus builds up in the lungs causing breathing
problems, which can be life threatening.

Thibodaux said when he was born, the doctors told him he might not live
after the age of 12 and that he might not get to play and run around like
the other kids do.

“My parents decided that if I was only going to live to 12, I was going to
be the happiest 12 year old in the world. So they let me do everything
a normal kid would do, which my doctors actually think helped me stay
healthy,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux said growing up he was like a normal kid. He said he played

sports like track and football and eventually became a cop in the town of
Thibodaux. However, in 2015, he received two double lung transplants.

In his 20s, his lung function started to drop. Thibodaux said he started
getting out of breath easier and it was harder for him to maintain his

40
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
weight.

“Whenever you are born with something like CF and you know that
organ donation, or a double lung transplant is in your future, or that now
they have this new medication, that they didn’t have when I was little to
prevent that. So you grow up looking at how long until I need it. It’s a
scary thing to look at,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux said a doctor from Tulane referred him to another doctor at

Ochsner and they tested him and said he needed to be on the list for a
transplant. One gets put on the list by severity, or how bad they need the
transplant. Thibodaux was put second on the list.

According to Thibodaux, the hardest organs to donate are the lungs.

If lungs are damaged or if one has CF, the lungs won’t be available for
donation. Lung donations also depend on height, size and blood type.
Thibodaux’s blood type is type O, so his donor had to match that.

He got called in twice for news about his surgery. Thibodaux said the
second time, doctors had him prepared and ready for surgery. Doctors
had to wake him up in the middle of starting sugery to tell him the lungs
that were being donated wouldn’t work.

41
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY

“Whenever you’re in a room, like it’s a room full of oxygen and you
can’t breath even when you’re on oxygen, that’s a terrifying feeling. It’s
everybody around you who doesn’t understand what it feels like. You’re
suffocating. It feels like someone has a pillow over your face and they are
suffocating you,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux said within a five month period he got called in for a third time
and this was finally when his transplant happened. After waking up from
surgery, he took a deep breath in and said that it felt amazing.

“You don’t realize when you’re growing up, even if you’re healthy, like how
normal people breathe. How much better it is,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux said he was recovering and was out of bed within 24 hours of
his surgery. He said two weeks after his transplant, he started walking a
mile a day. He did this to try to build up his lungs. Soon after that he was
lifting weights and back at work within eight months after his transplant.

Thibodaux also said there was a little rejection with the transplant here
and there. He ended up getting an infection a year after his transplant.
The doctors thought the lungs just weren’t that great of a match.

42
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
He said he noticed something was wrong because he was starting to get
winded and short of breath. When he went back to the doctor, his lung
function had dropped 20%. He said doctors tried i.v.s, steroids, antibiotics
and that they tried everything.

So, they immediately decided to put him back on the list for a second
double lung transplant.

“At the time there was only one other person at Ochsner who had a
second double lung transplant and she didn’t make it out of surgery. The
second one is even more dangerous than the first one,” said Thibodaux.

By the time Thibodaux did get the second transplant, he was at 12%
lung function. He said the second time was way worse than the first time.
”Oxygen tanks didn’t even help.”

He said when he was tested to go into surgery, doctors were doing his
heart cath when they accidently let air in both of his lungs causing them to
collapse.

Doctors do this test to see if one can survive surgery. They didn’t think
Thibodaux would.

43
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
“So I was laying down on the table and it started getting really hard to
breathe. I was telling the doctor, I can’t breathe, I need to sit up, I can’t
breathe,” said Thibodaux.

After a few seconds they sat him up and tried to use an oxygen mask, but
Thibodaux said the oxygen mask felt like it was suffocating him.

The next day, Thibodaux said he woke up in ICU. His doctors said he had
emergency test tubes inserted to reinflate his lungs.

Thibodaux got released within three days of being at the hospital. This
second transplant was two years ago in August.

“The second lung transplant felt like it was easier to me. I already knew
what to expect. I already knew how I was going to recover, but it was
harder leading up to it. Leading up to it, I mean, when oxygen doesn’t
help and you are sitting there and know you need this transplant, you
know you can feel that it won’t be much longer that if you don’t get
this transplant, you are going to be dead. It’s not a good feeling,” said
Thibodaux.

Just like the first one, after this second transplant, Thibodaux said he did

44
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
the same thing, which was walking and exercising to build himself back
up. He was down to 108 pounds after this surgery.

He continued to work out and eight months after his transplant he was up
and traveling. Since two years ago on Aug. 21, he said he hasn’t had any
problems with his lungs yet.

“When you’re going through stuff like that, you realize tomorrow is not
promised. You better live your life the way you want because tomorrow
might not be tomorrow,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux said he is now planning a wedding and will be attending the

transplant games. The transplant games are every other year. Thibodaux
was on the basketball team and the volleyball team in Salt Lake, the year
before last. He said it is like the olympics for organ recipients.

He said he met other double lung transplant recipients at the games from
different states. The next transplant games are coming up in July in New
Jersey. Thibodaux said he is excited and will be attending the games
again.

Thibodaux also said he did get to meet one of his donor families and he
said they are now like family to him.

45
APPENDIX VII
PAUL THIBODAUX FEATURE STORY
“They are amazing people. Meeting them is actually just as scary as the
transplant because you don’t know how they are going to look at you.
Their loved one died to make you live, so when you’re looking at that it’s
hard to walk up to these people and tell them thank you,” said Thibodaux.

Thibodaux doesn’t know anything about his second donor yet. He said
sometimes you won’t find them if they don’t try to find you. He does know
his second donor saved five people who needed organ transplants.

“If you’re looking at a transplant, the mind is a powerful thing. If you

believe you are going to be healthy, if you believe you can push through a
double lung transplant, then you can,” said Thibodaux.

46
APPENDIX VIII
THE GIFT OF LIFE FEATURE STORY
This world is filled with many wonderful things. It is crazy and chaotic, yet
loving at the same time. It is filled with love, hope, and an infinite number
of possibilities.

No matter what, we as humans count on this world and all the gifts it has
to offer. Family and friends make up our days. Life evolves. Some of us
grow and change with it. These are all gifts that we take advantage of.

A gift is something you can pass on to another. A gift could mean the
presents on Christmas morning, the food on your plate at night, or even,
the gift of life.

The gift of life isn’t just a small bundle of joy being born, but it is also the
donation of organs.

Not all of us in this world are lucky enough to be born healthy. Not
everyone is able to go through our life without an accident or illness.

Receiving an organ transplant from a donor is probably the best gift

anyone could ever receive. That person receives love, hope, and a second
chance at life again.

47
APPENDIX VIII
THE GIFT OF LIFE FEATURE STORY
One thing we can be in this world is healthy. Having healthy organs means
you can become an organ donor and hopefully someday save up to eight
lives.

Picture the possibility of losing a loved one. That moment where you
would give anything if it meant that person got to continue to live.

In truth, we have the option to do so. Your organs are a perfect match for
someone. You can be someone’s hero by being an organ donor.

There is so much hope a person can give when it comes to organ

donation.

Finding a match is often lengthy and sometimes doesn’t happen at all. By

being on the registry, you give someone a chance.

An example would be the heartfelt movie we all know and love, Steel
Magnolias. This is the beautiful story of endless mother daughter
arguments that showcases just how far a family will go to save one
another.

In this story, we see a mother who is providing everything she can for a

48
APPENDIX VIII
THE GIFT OF LIFE FEATURE STORY
daughter who is in need of a kidney transplant. Unfortunately when given
the transplant, it doesn’t take. The movie results in tears being shed and
your favorite colors might just be blush and bashful after watching.

A mother tried to offer her daughter a gift. It is because of this story and
many more, we are aware life goes on.

There are many other movies that showcase what the power of organ
donation can do. Let’s not forget about “mommy, you have a virus in your
heart.”

Beaches. The story of two best friends who battle over jealousy for one
another. Unfortunately the main character needs a heart transplant a few
years after she has a daughter. The best friends fight and battle through it
all together until her very last breath.

These movies show just how hard it is to receive an organ. They show that
while not every case is a happy ending, but instead they show that life
goes on. They show that life is precious and short.

Some cases people do make it out of their surgery. And when they do
they will have a life full of obstacles. We can offer them that much.

49
APPENDIX VIII
THE GIFT OF LIFE FEATURE STORY
So become an organ donor and give people the gift of life.

Give them hope and a chance to live again.

50
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
Mary Duplantis lives happily with her husband and four children in
thibodaux after receiving a heart transplant seven years ago.

Duplantis says it all started in 2007. At first it started with a small incident
at a birthday party where her pulse started beating very fast.

“I started getting really really hot. I made that comment to my mom. I

said oh I am really hot and I said I am going to go and get some fresh air,”
Duplantis said.

She never made it outside, but Duplantis said she sat on a bench with her
daughter and that was the last thing she remembered. She had passed
out.

Duplantis said she was lucky because a couple of the moms there were
nurses who knew exactly what to do. Duplantis said the hospital told her
she had Ventricular tachycardia (VT).

Ventricular tachycardia or a V-Tach, is when one has a fast, abnormal heart

rate. It is also called sudden cardiac death. Duplantis said her heart went
so fast at the birthday party that it just stopped.

51
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
Duplantis said she read somewhere that only three percent of people
survive that. At the hospital doctors got her stable. They told her they did
everything they could. She said her first miracle was getting better the
very next day.

“I know that my faith and prayers have played a huge part in this journey.
But that is actually what started everything before I even knew I had any
trouble,” Duplantis said.

Duplantis said while she was in the hospital in Houma, she got a
pacemaker.

“The first thing I remember was I woke up and I had that implanted and
I felt fine. I actually was in the hospital for just a little over a week at that
time. When I got home, I was doing better and taking a lot of medication
of course and then I started to get shocked,” Duplantis said.

Doctors told her 99 percent of people who get pacemakers will never get
shocked. However, she did. The V-tach she had started coming back. She
started taking care of it by medication and going to the doctor to change
the settings of it.

52
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
In May of 2007, Duplantis said her doctor then sent her to a specialist in
Houston to have an ablation done. This is a procedure where they go in
and laser the cells in the heart that are causing the abnormal heart rhythm.

She said she came home and all was well until it happened again in
September of 2007. She had another ablation. She eventually started
rehab in Thibodaux.

“I seemed to be doing really good, dealing with heart failure, doing

normal routines, going to cardiac rehab and taking all my meds. And then
it happened again,” Duplantis said.

She was doing well until she went back in February. This was her third time
going back to Houston.

At this point, her doctor compared her heart to her past ablations. Her
doctor said her heart was getting worse and that it was weakening.

This was supposed to be a one night procedure, but Duplantis said her
doctor would not let her leave. Instead, she was sent to a heart failure
specialist.

53
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
“It wasn’t until here that they started talking about a heart transplant,
which freaked me out because I thought I was doing so well,” Duplantis
said.

She said her doctor not only talked about a heart transplant, but also
talked to her about a device called a Left Ventricular Assist Device,
otherwise known as an LVAD.

An LVAD means they do an open heart surgery when they put a pump in
your abdomen and they connect it to your heart. Duplantis said another
weird thing about it is that there is a hose connected to your stomach and
the other part of it is connected to a battery pack.

“So half of this machine is inside of you and half of it is external. I carried it
around in a backpack,” Duplantis said.

Duplantis said they did this because they thought the pump would let
the heart rest by pumping for it. This only happens with very few cases.
Duplantis said she had this LVAD for about three years.

Duplantis said after carrying her heart around as a backpack with batteries
everyday caused her to have a strict routine.

54
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
“I came back home to Thibodaux, and living with that LVAD was really
strange. I couldn’t bath because it was electric, I could not go in a boat,
I couldn’t go anywhere near water. I had to take a shower and I had to
protect it while I was in the shower. I had to cover it up and the site on my
belly,” Duplantis said.

After a year, her doctors ordered she be put on the heart transplant list.
This meant she had to move to Houston.

“Whenever you get a phone call that they have a heart for you, you have
to be at the hospital within two and a half hours,” Duplantis said.

Duplantis said her husband and her youngest son moved with her to
Houston. She said her other children stayed at her home in Thibodaux
with family and friends.

When she moved to Houston, she still had the LVAD. She continued to
exercise and do everything like normal until Feb. 28, 2013. She got the
phone call saying there was a possible heart match.

Duplantis said that most people get a false alarm with the first call or first
possible match. One issue she was concerned with was her body

55
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
producing high antibodies in her blood.

She said 95 percent of the hearts they could possibly transplant for
her, her body would reject. Duplantis said they did a procedure that
was almost like dialysis for kidneys. They replaced the plasma with no
antibodies in it. This was a 15 day procedure.

Duplantis said they matched her donor by a lot of things. For her, doctors
had to individually mix her blood type and match it with someone else’s
because she had a lot of antibodies.

So the day she got the call, her doctors told her she was second in line.
She called her family and warned them not to get excited in case it was a
false alarm.

Duplantis then went to her bible study and went to mass. She did
everything she normally did while she waited for the official call. When the
doctors called her back they said the lady before her was not a match and
they were trying to figure out if Duplantis was going to be a match.

Eventually she was scheduled for a surgery.

56
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
“I just sat around for most of the afternoon. The surgery just kept on
getting pushed back. They have to get all of the organs harvested at the
same time,” Duplantis said.

Duplantis surgery started at nine that day and her first heart beat was
on March 1, 2013 with her new heart. She said while in recovery was the
hardest part.

“You’re hurting, your chest is hurting, but you’re also very… I don’t know.
It is just weird,” Duplantis said.

Duplantis said at the beginning she wasn’t a very good patient. Doctors
were ready to get her up, even when sometimes she didn’t feel like she
was ready..

Duplantis said she spent four weeks in the hospital. She was going to daily
and weekly appointments, which then led to monthly and now she goes
every year.

Since then, it has been seven years since her transplant.

57
APPENDIX IX
MARY DUPLANTIS FEATURE STORY
“Thank God I am one of the very lucky ones that I don’t really have any
trouble with side effects with the medication. I feel very good, I try to
exercise everyday and of course try to eat right and do what I have to do.
I take care of myself. Now I only have to go back to houston once a year,”
Duplantis said.

58