“We don’t typically have volunteers his age because they usually need a lot of parental supervision,” Shannyn Yalaoui, board member and financial coordinator with Columbia Second Chance, says of 10-year-old Dominic Stelzer. “It’s rare that we have such a young volunteer who can work without a parent being right there, but Dominic has thought of ways to contribute to Second Chance without needing parental or adult supervision.”

Dominic Stelzer

Although he loves all animals, Dominic’s focus is cats. His serious interest started last year when he and his mom, Diann, were at a pet store where Second Chance, an all-volunteer, no-kill animal rescue organization, was holding an adoption event. He spied a kitten and an adult cat he immediately wanted to take home. Mom said OK to the adult cat and suggested that Dominic volunteer at Second Chance’s feline shelter, the Catty Shack. This way, she thought, Dominic would get his fill of cats.

Actually, he couldn’t seem to get enough of them and showered the cats with all the love and attention only a child can give. They respond by becoming more playful and cuddly. Dominic scoops out litter boxes, fills food and water bowls, sweeps the floor and, perhaps most important, pays much-needed attention to the cats.

Of particular importance is his work in matching cats to adopters; he has a knack for knowing which cats are “child friendly” and which are better suited to adult households. Dominic also does odd jobs around the Catty Shack like raking leaves and shoveling snow.

Because of his involvement with Second Chance, Dominic’s Cub Scout pack has become involved with the shelter. At his suggestion, Cub Scout Pack 700 walked dogs in the Holiday Parade and sponsored a kitten. His Webelos den prepared the shelter’s donation boxes for Christmas, and Dominic helped deliver eight of them to local stores and helped collect donated items. His interest in photography and cinematography prompted him to make a video of adoptable cats, acting as narrator and detailing the cats’ wonderful attributes. Most recently, Dominic has helped bring Second Chance animals to visit senior citizens at the Adult Day Connection.

The Stelzer family moved here four years ago from Perry, Fla. Dominic’s dad, Hank, earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Missouri-Columbia and returned to work in MU’s forestry extension. Diann left a career as a neonatal intensive care nurse to stay home with Dominic and his brother, Zachary, 12, who attends Columbia Independent School while Dominic is home-schooled by Diann. Hank’s mother, Carol, originally from Troy, lives with them.

The family is active in scouting, often camping and taking Boy Scout trips together as well as trips to Florida. In a few months, Dominic will earn the Arrow of Light Award, the highest award in Cub Scouts before bridging over to Boy Scouts; Diann is his den leader. Dominic is a top popcorn salesman and has been the den’s highest seller since he’s joined. In addition to raising money, he enjoys the rewards for his efforts, like meeting and having lunch with Tiger football player Will Franklin.

The Stelzers are members of Community United Methodist Church, where both boys are in the bell choir. Dominic is also in a bell choir at Calvary Episcopal Church. “Being in two bell choirs has greatly improved his reading ability,” says Diann.

Dominic, who is dyslexic, strives to do what he can; however reading, writing and staying on task are challenging. Despite these difficulties, he frequently logs information into the shelter’s daily journal so the next volunteer will know what has occurred that day. “He is easily distracted and has trouble focusing,” Diann says, “but when it comes to cats, his attention seldom wavers.”

Dominic says he likes cats so much “because they’re so affectionate and like to sit on your lap.” The fourth-grader says his best subject is science and he “likes learning about all the creatures in the world and how things work.” He feels “homeschooling is really good. I get the attention I need, and my mom helps me get through all of my work. When I’m doing my school work, she’s my teacher. When we’re through, she’s my mom again.”

When he’s not saving cats, he plays in a basketball league and enjoys camping with friends, “especially roasting s’mores.” He’ll always be “looking out for animals,” he says, and when he grows up, he’d “like to be an NBA basketball player or a veterinarian specializing in cats.”

Dominic Stelzer’s childish love of animals has grown into an awareness of the dilemma homeless creatures, particularly cats, face in this community. And he’s doing more than a 10-year-old would be expected to accomplish in his effort to solve a problem predominently caused by adults.

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