Organs of late Scott City teen given to five people

Dominic "Dom" Hooper wouldn't let anyone walk by without flashing them a smile, said his mother, Sara Snider, and he wouldn't have thought twice of donating an organ to help someone. That's just how he was.

"I know he'd do anything for anybody, wouldn't matter what it is," Snider said Wednesday. "He's just a good kid."

The untimely death of the Scott City 17-year-old less than two weeks ago presented five people with a better chance at living their lives.

After Hooper died from an all-terrain vehicle accident, a 27-year-old man received his heart, a 31-year-old man was given his left kidney and pancreas, his right kidney was donated to a 40-year-old individual, both his lungs were given to a 43-year old man and a 7-year-old received his liver.

The man who was given Hooper's lungs was removed from a ventilator a day later, Snider said. He is a father of two.

Hooper loved children, said his uncle and godfather Allen Collier, adding that Hooper was a godfather to Collier's youngest child.

"I think what really helped us through all of this was the fact that his liver went to a 7-year-old," Collier said. "We know he would've done that in a heartbeat for some child."

Finding that Hooper's blood type was O negative, a "universal" blood type that meant his organs could be donated to anyone in need, was just another thing that solidified the idea that if anyone was to be an organ donor, it was her son, Snider said. Dom was meant for it.

"He keeps performing little miracles every time we turn around," she said.

As a student, Hooper wove through different groups of students and befriended all of them using his happy, funny and outgoing ways, Snider said.

While he was in the hospital, Collier said Hooper had visitors who were in junior high school and some who had graduated high school.

"We were all praying for a miracle, obviously, but five other people got a miracle," he said.

Snider said she eventually will receive a letter with general information about the individuals who received her son's organs, and she will be able to send those recipients a letter through Mid-America Transplant Services. They then can write back.

She plans to send each organ recipient a letter about her son, telling them who Dom was, his outlooks on life, the way he changed the lives of his loved ones and friends and how he now is able to live on through them.

"I think it's wonderful that he's leaving a legacy," Snider said. "In my eyes, and I'm sure in eyes of these five families, he's a hero."

Also, Chick-fil-A in Cape Girardeau will donate a portion of sales generated from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday to the Dominic M. Hooper Scholarship Fund.

"Our thoughts are with Dominic's family during this difficult time," said Brian House, the restaurant's owner, in a news release. "He was a special young man to so many. We want to join our community in honoring Dominic's life by giving back to his scholarship as much as we can."

"What was so eye-opening for all of us is we knew what kind of kid Dominic was. ... I didn't realize that the world saw him that way, too," Collier said.

Snider never gave much thought to organ donation until recently. She has since signed the back of her driver's license.

"I know he will live on for quite a long time," Snider said. "People will always remember Dominic, I know."

ashedd@semissourian.com

388-3632

Pertinent addresses:

Scott City, Mo.

3333 Gordonville Road, Cape Girardeau, Mo.