Family, organ recipients gather to honor donor Dominic Hooper

Dominic Hooper’s friends, family and organ recipients filled a room Saturday at The Front Porch in Scott City anticipating the reveal of his likeness in a floragraph — a portrait made with floral materials such as spices, seeds and crushed flowers.

It’s one of 44 that will be featured in the 131st Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan 1 in California honoring organ and tissue donors nationwide.

Mid-America Transplant hosted the ceremony on behalf of Hooper’s parents, Chris and Sara Snider of Scott City. Chris and Sara had the honor of adding the finishing touches to the project: Hooper’s eyebrows.

Hooper, 17, of Scott City died because of injuries sustained in an ATV accident Feb. 23, 2014. But through that tragedy, the lives of five people were saved — and three of the organ recipients were in attendance Saturday.

Prior to the floragraph reveal, Sara Snider said she couldn’t help but think what Hooper would be doing today.

“In the past five years, [Dom] played basketball, Dom got to get married and got to become a father,” she said of those who received his organs.

Scott Holden of Springfield, Missouri, received Hooper’s lungs through a bilateral lung transplant Feb. 25, 2014.

“I was on 15 liters of oxygen (before the transplant) so I was struggling pretty bad,” Holden said. “It really changed my life.”

He said talking with other organ recipients Saturday was an “amazing” experience, adding he had only met one organ recipient of Hooper’s before the event, Jacob Feicht of Sandusky, Ohio. Feicht received Hooper’s heart Feb. 25, 2014.

Holding back tears, Feicht said at first the situation with Hooper was overwhelming because “the family had to lose a loved one; but it’s not a total loss.” Without Hooper’s sacrifice, “I wouldn’t have Carter,” Feicht said of his 16-month-old son at his feet, whose middle name also is Dominic.

“There’s nothing I can do to make up for it,” Feicht said. “Without organ donation, no one has a second chance.”