Meet Jennifer Guynn and Beth Freeman of Pebble Tossers

Pebble Tossers  is a nonprofit that not only helps youth learn the joy of serving, but also introduces them to twelve key cause areas, offers character and leadership development education, and has custom workshops that help youth find their passion area of service.

Jennifer founded Pebble Tossers 13 years ago. Being Executive Director and Founder, wearing multiple hats comes with the territory. And surrounding herself with an incredible team was key in making Pebble Tossers grow and thrive.

Beth joined Pebble Tossers around 2 years ago. With experience in the for-profit, she was happy to bring her insight to membership development and marketing for this amazing organization. 

The membership program for Pebble Tossers is a great way to get the whole family involved in the act of serving. For instance, if the service is cleaning an area of a highway, they provide the tools and the bug spray and the water bottles, etc, so that those volunteering can focus on the service they are providing. 

So tell us, Jennifer, what is your favorite part of your role?

There are so many! I’ve done a bit of everything, but I love to talk with the kids. We have so many people who, when they come to Pebble Tossers, they’ve never volunteered before. Mostly kids, but even some adults. They’re usually a little nervous and then their confidence grows and they really start to own it. And you can see it! You can see their self esteem rise, because of the good and help they’re providing to others.

That’s beautiful. And I’ve seen both sides of that, when you show up and aren’t quite sure what to do and then when you go somewhere and everything is organized and you can focus on the act of service. The confidence that provides is such an important factor, especially for kids who really need that encouragement and self confidence when they’re starting to volunteer.

Jennifer: Fun is one of our core values! We want you to feel like you belong and you’re welcomed and you have a place with us. 

Let’s fast forward 5 years. What are you doing and what is Pebble Tossers doing? Beth first, and then Jen.

I’d love to have a team of membership managers in different markets. Pebble Tossers is something that can be easily replicated in different markets. starting throughout Georgia and then beyond. That would be the goal, to be outside metro Atlanta.

There are so many organizations that are focused on adult engagement and not a lot that focus on the child and age-appropriate service.

There are a few organizations nationally that we’ve connected with that do that, and we’re all slightly different. What makes our organization different is the volunteer management system on our website. You can log on, record service hours, write a short testimonial and then if the child needs to turn in information on their volunteering, for Scouts or some sort of award, it’s already tracked and they can just print that off. That’s unique to us. And we’ve had several people from several states in the South ask us, “When are you coming here?” So we’re looking into those possibilities too. 

I feel like you are creating a pathway. There are nonprofits all over the country but not a lot are focused on engaging and inspiring children to volunteering opportunities. When I was growing up and had to do community service, there were, like, two places! And that’s it. That’s all we knew about. And other nonprofits I knew about, I didn’t think they would take child volunteers. So getting the word out and showing kids how many service opportunities are available to them and need them is very special. And logging on and seeing a dashboard of opportunities would make me really excited rather than overwhelmed or lost for options. 

We have relationships with a lot of organizations around the city and, like you mentioned earlier, we sort of vet them to see where we can plug in kid volunteers. And kids can try a few different things to see what project speaks to them most. And we have a specific outline of what the kids are going to be doing, so the parent can have that peace of mind as well. 

I’m really passionate about Social Fundraising. What is a specific social movement or cause or fundraiser you saw online that really spoke to you?

Beth: Not sure if this qualifies, but my favorite Twitter post of all time was from the MERL (Museum of English Rural Life). And they asked the British Museum to show their best ducks. So all these museums around the world started posting their best ducks and it was amazing. But they turned it into marketing and they’re using it to cross promote as well with other museums. It was brilliant. 

So I’d love to hear from each of you. What makes your job easier? Your goals easier to achieve or those milestones more attainable?

Jennifer: Open lines of communication! We can’t read each other’s minds. We use Slack and Asana all the time. It makes communicating with our whole team just that much easier and streamlined. And making sure the different departments are all connected. 

Beth: I’m a big teamwork fan. I thrive in groups. Not only do you get things done, but the creative problem solving when everyone is working together is great. Especially because we are remote, Slack and Asana keep us on track and on the same page. 

Finish this sentence for me,  “More nonprofits should be…?”

Collaborative. Bold!

I say that all the time! “Lean into your expertise.” “Why are you different?” “What are you doing that is unique to your organization?” I love that.

Bonus question: What is one thing you wish people knew about your organization?

We’re 24-7. And there’s something for everyone. It’s not just little kids. It’s not just teenagers. It’s not just families. And if someone doesn’t see something on our service calendar, they can call us and we will find something for you, because we care and we want you involved. 

Tell us, how can people find out more and connect with you?

Please go check out our website, PebbleTossers.org, and find fun new ways to get involved in your community! All of our socials are @PebbleTossers.

The whole idea behind our name is when you toss a pebble, you start a ripple of giving.

Call us! Email us! We love talking with people. 

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