If you spend much time at Inlet Beach, you’ve probably seen Bobby Watkins, the friendly Beach Steward who works the B Shift with Walton County Code Compliance. As a Beach Steward, Bobby Watkins interacts with beachgoers constantly.
Over time, he noticed something: visitors would bring beach toys for their kids to play with, but when the vacation ended, most of the toys were discarded because they were impractical to pack for the trip home. That’s when he conceived of the idea for “Bobby Buckets.”
According to Lead Beach Steward Tammy Lakin, Bobby took some discarded landscaping containers designated for the landfill and gave them a second life. After drilling holes in the bottoms so sand and water could drain through, Watkins transformed the containers into community toy stations, she said.
The concept is delightfully simple: take a toy, leave a toy. Enjoy the beach but leave no trace behind.
Placed near beach boardwalks, the Bobby Buckets have become a place where visitors can leave gently used beach toys for the next family to enjoy. For children arriving without sand toys, the buckets offer an unexpected treasure chest waiting to be discovered. For departing families, they provide an easy way to pass along toys instead of throwing them away.
Even better, the buckets help reduce waste and keep plastic out of the environment. They can easily be removed at the end of the busy season or relocated any time storm conditions make it necessary.
Code Compliance Director Tony Cornman praised the initiative and its results. “Bobby, and all of our Beach Stewards, are deeply passionate about our beach and work very hard every day to help keep it beautiful. Bobby Buckets is just one example of how every day our beach stewards welcome visitors and do their part by helping to ensure everyone has an awesome time while they're here,” said Cornman.
Bobby Watkins has lived up to the name and proven himself to be a good steward of the beach, but the reward isn’t recognition. For Bobby, the reward is seeing cleaner beaches, protecting marine life, and watching families create memories together on Walton County beaches.
As Tammy Lakin said, “Sometimes the best ideas are the simplest ones and thanks to Bobby Buckets, a small act of kindness is making a lasting impact, one sandcastle at a time.”