Eye Bank founder and president Dr. Dominga "Minguita" Padilla never imagined that the  "Be a Hero" thesis of the graduating Scholastican students would be that big.

"Napaka-ground-breaking!" commented Ali Sotto, a television and radio personality and eye donation advocate.

Four determined Broadcast Journalism students – Karen Ann Jocame Loquias, Sandra Marie Guerrero Mendoza, Pamela Dayal Nandwani and this writer – were on the verge of desperation as they were running out of time for the ultimate requirement to graduate from college – their thesis. We have not thought of a research topic yet and it seemed that the award for Best Thesis was slowly vanishing into thin air.

One fine day, while we were consulting with our thesis adviser, the idea of eye donation popped into our minds. However, it was not the kind of topic we were looking for. It was not at all hip, fun and exciting. But something unexplainable urged us to further develop the topic and explore the whole idea.

We contacted the Eye Bank Foundation of the Philippines right away. Since then, the rest, as the cliché goes, was history.

The reassuring interest and assistance that the Eye Bank had shown in the person of Chin Regalado, Public Relations coordinator of the Eye Bank, was a blessing from heaven. It reinforced the feeling that we were on the right track and that we were doing the right thing. We dived into the deep waters of the unknown. We did not know what lied beneath. There was no backing out. The pressure was killing us.

After days of brainstorming, consultation, sleepless nights and disturbed sleeps, The "BE A HERO" Campaign on Eye/Cornea Donation was born at last.

The final topic arrived in September and we had to launch the campaign in December. So, pretty much, everything we had to do was in fast forward mode. We worked double time – October, November and December were months of long, hard days and nights.

The whole preparation stage was one roller coaster ride; there were so many highs and lows. We needed money but we didn’t have any source. We needed support from companies but most of them turned us down. Our parents screamed at us every single night because we would come home late every now and then.

There were moments when we wanted to give up and just change the topic all over again. There were even instances when fear and worry would just eat us up and images of not being able to graduate and not getting the Best Thesis were slowly making its form in our minds. It was not at all easy.

As we got to know more about the Eye Bank, eye donation and the people involved with it, we underwent a weird transformation of some sort. Midway through our campaign preparations, we found ourselves working oddly enthusiastically. We didn’t care anymore what other people said about it. We just worked and went in motion. And the best part was, it dawned on us that we were not slaving ourselves anymore just to win the Best Thesis but to help the Eye Bank and thousands of "corneally-blind" individuals.

It was a better motivation to have and the pressure to make excellent work was slowly replaced with the sincere intention to help. We began to understand the real purpose of the years of our education: to develop our skills and talents and to use our knowledge to improve the condition of our society and to make it a better place to live in. They may sound cliché and very elementary, but it’s simply true. It took us six years in grade school, four years in high school and another four years in college to find that out. And we still have a lifetime to find out more.

The ‘Be a Hero" Campaign on Eye/Cornea Donation was a 10-day campaign that aimed to raise awareness and participation of college students of St. Scholastica’s College, Manila on cornea/eye donation.

The campaign consisted of tri-media and alternative media. The campaigners created their own posters, audio-visual presentation, radio ads and brochures. A booth was set-up to serve as a station where people can avail of and submit their pledge forms to get their own donor cards.

Last December, the "BE A HERO" thesis associates held their culminating event at the St. Cecilia’s Hall of St. Scholastica’s College, Manila. Prominent personalities such as Ms. Cheche Lazaro, Ms. Sotto and Dr. Padilla shared their personal experiences on eye donation. Rizabel Cloma-Santos, president of the PMI Colleges and Harry Francisco of the De La Salle University were also there. Barbie Almalbis, Brownbeat All-Stars and new upcoming bands, Unlabeled and Join the Club, gave the young audiences a treat with their own brand of music.

At the end of the campaign and as of press time, the "Be a Hero" was able to collect about 680 donors – and still counting. The campaigners had now started to disseminate pledge forms in other schools and universities, conceptualizing on pushing through with the recommendation to replicate the campaign in other colleges and universities.

"I think this is a really good pilot program spearheaded by St. Scholastica’s College… It is really amazing that at such a young age, you have already thought of this," remarked Sotto. "I didn’t imagine that I would be speaking about eye donation in a hall such as this. I am very impressed," Lazaro said.

Hearing these words from them made the four of us cry. They washed away every inch of doubt and fear. It was worth the blood, sweat and tears after all.