At 15, Gabrielle Tobin has collected accolades and awards it might take others a lifetime to amass. The Smyrna resident’s most recent honors include being singled out by the Corporate Volunteer Council, receiving the Gold Award from the Girl Scouts and being named by the Greater Atlanta Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals as a Teen Volunteer of the Year.
What’s made Tobin stand out is not just her involvement in a variety of philanthropic works. She’s also been doing it since she was 10.
“On my 10th birthday, I decided I didn’t want presents; I wanted to donate to people who really needed it,” she said. “My birthday is in August, so I asked people to give school supplies that I donated to Lindley Sixth Grade Academy down the street from my house.”
While that tradition has continued, Tobin also expanded her efforts to help the school during the pandemic. Together with several friends, she created “For Math’s Sake,” 13 videos that explain concepts such as coordinate planes and subtracting decimals.
“I knew when everything shut down that my peers at Lindley would be impacted by remote learning,” she said. “The principal provided the math subjects that are covered, and then everybody took a topic and made the videos at home.”
Those videos won Tobin the Gold Award from the Girl Scouts that recognizes significant community contributions. And the $1,500 prize awarded by the Corporate Volunteer Council will fund more videos for seventh graders.
Tobin also launched a nonprofit, 40 Mustard Seeds, whose motto is “Inspiration through Multiplication.”
“The goal is to provide tutoring and tools for children in Title 1 schools,” she said.
Now a sophomore at The Lovett School and a competitive gymnast, Tobin has taken her enthusiasm for community outreach to the Buckhead campus. She represents her class on the service board that comes up with projects students can get involved in.
“Just this week, we wrote out Christmas cards for kids with cancer,” she said. “We’ve very involved with groups related to children, especially those with cancer.”
Those connections align with Tobin’s ultimate goal: to become an oncologist.
“I’ve always wanted to be a doctor, but I’ll keep doing community service,” she said. “That’s what I love.”
Who’s doing good? Each week, we write about a deserving individual, charity events such as fun-runs, volunteer projects and other community gatherings that benefit a good cause. To suggest an event or person for us to cover, contact us at ajc.doinggood@gmail.com.
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