Children are the future and if they all have hearts as big as Evan’s, the future looks bright.

Evan, a 10-year-old from Bronx, New York, spends his weekends reading books to shelter dogs at the Animal Care Centers (ACC) of NYC.

A shelter can be a scary place for shelter dogs. The strange noises, smells, and limited interaction can really take a toll on them. Many cower in the back of their cages, while others bark due to the stress. Unfortunately, many are passed by because adopters are not able to see their true personalities.

Shelters are always looking for ways to help the dogs relax and children reading to them seems to work. Reading programs invite children to visit shelters and help nervous dogs relax by reading them a story. There are countless benefits for the shelter dogs and children.

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Evan started volunteering after his mom brought a stray dog she found on the street into the shelter. He is now a junior volunteer in the shelter’s Books for Boroughbreds program. He loves to help the at-risk dogs relax and has even started an Instagram page, with his mom’s help, that features the adoptable pups.

Recently, he posted about a dog named Guero. The handsome boy is waiting for a loving home and is described as, “gentle, soft and an all around equal opportunist lover who simply loves to freely give love to everyone- hoomans, dogs and cats – and let’s face it the world could do with more of that!”

A video was posted of Evan reading to Guero with the caption, “One can easily be drawn to this tender soul by his always upstanding- one perked ear – it’s part floppy part elf- but it’s ever-so inviting! It’s his way of letting you know he’s always there to hear you out- lending a listening ear if you will!”

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The kindhearted boy says his reward is seeing the stressed dogs relax and some even fall asleep. He told BuzzFeed, “All dogs are good — they’re just scared and they need love and they just need to know someone is on their side. I am happy to be their friend and I can tell it means a lot to them just by the way they react to me.”

Evan plans on volunteering long-term and someday hopes to help walk the shelter dogs. He also said that one day he will adopt a dog of his own and by then he hopes, “New York will be a no-kill state.”

Keep up the great work, Evan!