Written by the team behind Puzzlify. Puzzlify is our product, so weigh what follows with that in mind. We've tried to make this useful even if you never use it. We're not affiliated with any church, denomination, charity, shelter, school, retailer or community organisation.
Each Advent, some churches hold a sponsored sleep-out. For one cold night, a group of volunteers sleeps in the church car park or grounds, on cardboard and in sleeping bags, to raise money for a local night shelter or homelessness charity. Nobody pretends it's the same as sleeping rough. It's a fundraiser and a way of starting a conversation. It also takes far more organising than one night outdoors suggests. This short guide is about thanking the people who make it happen.
Below are a few ideas, plus an honest view of when a photo puzzle fits and when it doesn't.
What the sleep-out involves
Each church runs it a little differently, but the work usually includes:
- agreeing the date and the charity, and checking in with the charity about how they'd like it described
- sorting out permission for the site, a risk assessment and a plan if the weather turns
- sign-up forms, sponsorship pages and reminders in the notices
- collecting cardboard, tarpaulins and spare sleeping bags
- keeping the hall open for toilets, warmth and anyone who needs to stop
- running the urn all night: soup at ten, tea at two, bacon rolls at dawn
- a short reflection or prayer before lights out, if that's part of it
- someone staying awake on watch, checking everyone's all right
- clearing up in the morning and paying the sponsorship over to the charity
Why a thank-you matters
Sponsors see the total. Fewer see the planning meetings, the volunteer who stayed up all night on watch, or the person who kept the urn going until morning. The sleepers get the photos and the applause; the people who made it safe and warm often go unmentioned.
When to say it
The Sunday after, or when the final total is announced, works well. A New Year update from the charity is another good moment. A word over coffee, a card or a line in the parish magazine is often all that's needed.
Photos that work well
- a row of sleeping bags on cardboard under the church floodlights
- steam rising from the hall urn in the small hours
- frost on the car park at first light, with the church behind
- the sponsorship total chalked on a board or written on a poster
- the pile of folded cardboard and tarpaulins after the clear-up
- a mug of tea held in gloved hands
Wide shots and objects usually work better than faces, especially at night. If you'd like to include volunteers, ask them first, and for anyone under 18 ask a parent too. Please don't use photos of people who actually sleep rough or use the shelter: they aren't part of the fundraiser and deserve their privacy.
Choosing a piece count
| Pieces | Good for |
|---|---|
| 24 | a quick puzzle on a phone |
| 48 | a few minutes with a cup of tea |
| 80 | someone who likes a gentle challenge |
| 130 | a detailed scene, like the car park at dawn |
| 252 | a long evening, best on a tablet |
Night photos have lots of dark areas, which make a puzzle harder, so lean lower (24 or 48). A bright dawn shot or the total on a poster works well at 80 or 130.
Note examples
- "Thank you for staying up all night so the rest of us could sleep, sort of."
- "Thank you for the soup at midnight and the tea at four."
- "We raised more than ever this year. None of it happens without your planning."
- "Thank you for the risk assessment nobody else wanted to write."
- "The shelter has more beds this winter because of what you organised. Thank you."
What it costs, plainly
The preview is free, so you can see how it looks before deciding anything. Publishing the link costs one credit (€3.99), or less per puzzle with a bundle. It's a digital puzzle, not a printed or cardboard one (there's been enough cardboard). The recipient doesn't need an account or an app; they open the link and your note appears when the last piece goes in. One puzzle shared with the whole team can work well. And if you'd rather the money went to the shelter, a card is perfect.
Ideas that are not a puzzle
- a thank-you in the notices with the total raised
- a card signed by the sleepers for the organisers and the urn crew
- an extra donation to the charity in the team's name
- a hot breakfast laid on for the organisers a week later
- offering to take a watch shift next year
- a short note from the charity about what the money will do
Where Puzzlify fits
Puzzlify turns a personal photo into a private digital jigsaw that you send as a link. It isn't a printed puzzle, and it isn't a public puzzle board: only the people you send it to can open it. It's one option among many, and it works best when the photo means something to the person receiving it. Please don't confuse it with puzzlify.io, Puzzlit, Puzzly or Puzzify, which are different things.
If a photo puzzle feels right as well, choose the dawn car park, the urn or the total on the board, pick a piece count that suits them, and write your note. You can make one here.
Written by the small team behind Puzzlify (info@puzzlify.app). Not legal, religious, charity, fundraising, health and safety, safeguarding, homelessness, privacy, photography permission or gift policy advice.