A thank-you for your Riding for the Disabled volunteers: a photo from the yard as a jigsaw, with your note at the end

Published on October 19, 2026

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 the Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA UK), RDA Australia, New Zealand RDA, PATH International, the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association (CanTRA), any RDA group, therapeutic riding centre, carriage driving group, riding school, stable, council, NHS organisation, school, charity or similar organisation. Nothing here is legal, safeguarding, medical, equestrian or privacy advice. Check your group's own rules on gifts, photos, publicity and contact between volunteers, riders and families.

It's half past nine on a cold Wednesday morning in October, and the yard smells of hay, wet leaves and coffee. A retired midwife called Helen is in the tack room, checking girths and stirrup leathers against a list on the wall. Outside, a student called Tom is grooming a stocky grey pony called Biscuit, who is trying very hard to eat his coat sleeve. Two more volunteers arrive with flasks and wellies: one will lead Biscuit, the other two will walk beside the rider, one on each side, a hand ready at the ankle. At ten, a minibus pulls into the car park from a local school, and a boy of eleven who barely spoke when he first came, two years ago, is first out of the door. He walks straight to the mounting ramp, says "Morning, Biscuit," and, a few minutes later, rides a careful figure of eight around the arena, steering all by himself for the first time. The coach grins. The side walkers grin. Helen, watching from the gate, has to pretend she's got something in her eye.

That's a Riding for the Disabled group. In the UK, the Riding for the Disabled Association, usually just called RDA, is a charity whose local groups give children and adults with disabilities the chance to ride, and in many groups to try carriage driving and other activities with horses and ponies. Similar organisations exist in Australia and New Zealand, and in the United States and Canada much of this work happens at therapeutic riding centres. Almost all of it depends on volunteers: people who lead the ponies, walk beside the riders, groom and tack up, muck out, clean saddles, run the paperwork, drive the horsebox, organise the fundraising, and turn up week after week in sun, wind and drizzle.

If you're a parent whose child lights up every Wednesday, an adult rider who wants to thank the team, a group organiser thinking about the Christmas party or the end of term, a teacher or carer who brings a group, or the family of a volunteer who spends every Saturday at the stables, this is a guide to saying thank you well. It covers the words, the people worth thanking, timing, the gift and photo rules that matter in a group like this, and one small idea from us: a photo from the yard, of a pony's ears, a rosette or the tack room, turned into a short private jigsaw, with your note appearing when the last piece goes in. We'll also be honest about when a card, a donation or a few kind words are the better choice.

Who we mean

When we say "Riding for the Disabled volunteers", we mean anyone who gives their time to a group, whether they're with RDA in the UK or a similar organisation elsewhere. That usually includes:

leaders, who lead the horse or pony during a session, keeping it calm, steady and at the right pace;
side walkers, who walk beside the rider, often one on each side, offering a steadying hand, encouragement and a running commentary of praise;
coaches, many of them volunteers too, who plan the sessions, teach the riders and keep everyone safe;
grooms and yard volunteers, who brush, tack up, feed, water, muck out, pick out hooves and clean the tack afterwards;
carriage driving volunteers, at groups that offer driving, who help with the harness, the carriage and the ramps;
group organisers, secretaries, treasurers and trustees, who manage the rotas, the paperwork, the insurance and the bank account;
fundraisers, drivers and helpers, who run the cake stalls and sponsored rides, drive the horsebox to competitions, and make the tea in the portacabin;
horse owners, at groups that borrow ponies, who lend their animals for sessions;
volunteers at therapeutic riding centres in the United States and Canada, and at RDA groups in Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere, under their own rules and arrangements.

Volunteers come from everywhere: retired people, students, parents, nurses, teachers, people who grew up with ponies and people who'd never touched a horse before they joined. You don't need to be able to ride to volunteer, and many of the best side walkers never have.

The words matter most

Before any gift, think about the words. Volunteers at a riding group see the smiles at the time, but they often don't see what happens afterwards: the child who talks about the pony all week, the adult rider whose confidence spills over into everything else, the family who plan their whole week around Wednesday morning. Telling them is the gift.

A few things make a thank-you land:

Be specific. "You walked beside Amira every week for a year, in the rain, and you always remembered to tell her how straight she was sitting" means far more than "thanks for everything."
Tell them what it meant, if it's yours to tell. "She steered by herself for the first time, and she hasn't stopped talking about it" is the kind of sentence volunteers remember for years.
Thank the whole team. The leader, both side walkers, the coach, the person who groomed the pony, and the pony too.
Keep it about the volunteers. You don't need to explain the rider's condition or share medical details to say thank you.
Keep it short. A few sincere sentences beat a long letter that never gets written.

If you only do one thing, write those few sentences on a card and hand it to the group organiser. Everything else here is optional.

Who might send one

A thank-you like this can come from many directions:

a parent or carer thanking the team who help their child ride every week;
an adult rider thanking their leader, side walkers and coach;
a teacher or support worker thanking the group for welcoming a class from school or a day centre;
a group organiser or coach thanking the whole volunteer team at the end of term or at the Christmas party;
volunteers saying goodbye to a long-serving leader, groom or organiser who is stepping down;
the partner, children or grandchildren of a volunteer, thanking them for all the cold mornings at the yard;
a horse owner thanking the group for looking after a much-loved pony in its working years.

Gifts, safeguarding and good manners

RDA groups and therapeutic riding centres work with children and adults who may be vulnerable, so they usually have clear rules about safeguarding, photos and contact between volunteers and riders. Rules vary between groups and countries, so treat what follows as general guidance and check with your group organiser.

Small and modest is best. A card, a box of biscuits for the tea room or a bag of carrots for the ponies (if the group allows treats) is usually welcome. Cash, vouchers or anything of real value to individual volunteers is best avoided, and many groups ask volunteers to decline such gifts.
A donation is often the most useful thank-you. Groups pay for feed, hay, farriers, vets, saddles, insurance and arena hire. If you want to give, give to the group through its proper route, and keep your personal thank-you separate.
Send it through the group. Don't seek out volunteers' personal phone numbers, addresses or social media. Give your card to the organiser, or send your message through the group's email or contact page.
Respect the rider's privacy. You don't need to include the rider's diagnosis, medical details or anything they wouldn't want shared.
Follow the group's photo rules. Many groups have strict rules about photographing riders, especially children, and about posting pictures online. Ask before you take or use any photo at the yard.
Never present a personal gift as official. Don't use RDA's or another organisation's logo in a puzzle as if it came from them.
Ask before feeding the ponies. Horses can have special diets, and some groups don't allow treats at all.

None of this makes saying thank you complicated. It just means keeping it small, going through the group, and leaving out anything that belongs to someone else.

When to send it

There's no deadline on gratitude, but some moments are natural:

at the end of term or the end of the year, when many groups take a break and hold a party;
at the Christmas party or summer show, when riders, families and volunteers are all together;
after a milestone, such as a rider's first trot, first time steering alone, first rosette, a proficiency test passed, a competition or a regional championship;
when a volunteer qualifies as a leader, side walker, coach or carriage driving helper, or reaches ten years with the group;
when a pony retires, which is often a very emotional moment for everyone;
during a national volunteers' week, if your group marks one.

If a rider has moved on, become too unwell to ride, or died, a thank-you can still matter enormously. Volunteers often wonder what happened to riders they knew for years. A short note through the organiser, at whatever time feels right, can mean the world.

Why a jigsaw can fit

Most thank-you cards are read once and pinned to the noticeboard in the tack room. A short jigsaw takes a few minutes to solve, and in those minutes the person is looking closely at a picture you chose, piece by piece, before your note appears at the end. For a riding group volunteer, a photo of a pony's ears from the saddle, a row of head collars on their hooks, a red rosette pinned to a stable door or a muddy arena on a misty morning says "we saw what you gave" without needing to show anyone's face.

It also travels well. An organiser can send one link to every volunteer on the rota, so the whole team solves the same picture of the yard before the Christmas party. A family can send one to the whole group through the organiser.

It isn't a replacement for words. It's a way of wrapping them, so they get a moment of attention before they're read.

If your child or relative rides

If your child, partner, parent or friend rides with a group, you might want to thank everyone who makes it happen, and you might also feel a mixture of things: pride, relief, gratitude, sometimes sadness about how hard other parts of life can be. That's all normal.

When you choose a photo, think about what your rider would be comfortable with. A photo of the pony they love, its ears from the saddle, a rosette or certificate on the fridge, the grooming kit, or a drawing your child made of the pony can all be perfect, and they keep faces out of the picture. If you'd like to use a photo of your rider, make sure they're happy (if they can tell you), that you're comfortable with it being seen by the volunteers, and that it follows the group's rules. Write what you're happy to share. "He talks about Biscuit every single day. Thank you for Wednesdays" is more than enough.

If you're an adult rider

Adult riders sometimes feel awkward about thanking volunteers, as though it draws attention to needing help. But volunteers almost always say the riders are the reason they come. A short note from you, in your own words, about what riding means, whether that's freedom, confidence, fresh air, friendship or simply the best hour of the week, is one of the most powerful thank-yous a volunteer can receive. A photo of the view between your pony's ears is a lovely, private choice.

If you're an organiser, coach or fellow volunteer

Organisers and coaches hold groups together: the rotas, the risk assessments, the vet bills, the volunteer training, the paperwork and the phone calls when three people drop out on a frosty morning. If you're thanking one of them, or thanking the whole team at the end of the year, a photo from the yard can be perfect: the ponies lined up along the fence, the tack room with its neatly labelled saddles, a wheelbarrow and fork after a good muck-out, the mounting ramp at sunrise, or the volunteers' wellies by the portacabin door. For someone stepping down after many years, a larger, slower puzzle of the yard, with notes from riders, families and volunteers, makes a lovely send-off.

If you live with a volunteer

Partners, parents and children of riding group volunteers know what it involves: the early starts, the muddy jeans in the wash, the smell of horse in the car, the stories about which pony was being cheeky this week. A thank-you from you might use a photo of their wellies, their volunteer fleece on its hook, the pony they always lead, or the volunteer with a pony on an open day, if they're happy with it. Write what you're proud of. It's for them.

For riding groups elsewhere

If you're in the United States, Canada, Australia or New Zealand, the details will differ. Therapeutic riding centres may employ staff and use volunteers in different roles, and the rules on gifts, photos and publicity may be stricter, especially where riders are children or where centres work with healthcare providers. Keep it small, send it through the centre, and keep riders' personal details out of the picture.

The best photos for a riding group thank-you are usually of ponies, places and things rather than riders. A few ideas:

a pony's ears seen from the saddle, with the arena or field ahead;
a pony with its head over the stable door, ideally a favourite;
a row of head collars or bridles hanging on their hooks in the tack room;
a rosette or certificate pinned to a stable door or on the fridge at home;
the grooming kit laid out on a bale of hay: brushes, hoof pick, curry comb;
the arena on a misty autumn morning, with the poles and cones set out;
volunteers' wellies lined up by the tea room door.

A few kindnesses keep it comfortable and safe:

follow the group's photo and safeguarding rules, and ask the organiser if you're unsure;
never use a photo of another rider, especially a child, without clear permission from them and their family;
ask volunteers before using a photo of them; some prefer not to be identified;
leave out anything with personal details, like names on the rota board, medical notes or riders' details on the noticeboard;
avoid making RDA's or another organisation's logo the focus, so it doesn't look official;
if in doubt, use a photo of the pony. Every volunteer will recognise it instantly.

Getting the JPG right

Puzzlify works from a JPG photo, so a few small things help:

ponies come in lovely colours, from grey and bay to skewbald and palomino; a pony against green grass or a red brick stable makes a satisfying puzzle;
large areas of plain sky, sand arena or white wall are hard to solve, so crop in on the interesting part, or pick a lower piece count;
take photos in daylight, outside if possible, rather than in a dark stable with the flash on, which can startle the pony and flatten the colours;
if there's writing you want people to read, like a pony's name on a stable door or "thank you" on a card, take the photo straight on and pick a higher piece count;
save the original JPG straight from your phone or camera rather than a copy from a messaging app, which compresses it. If your photo is in another format, save it as a JPG first.

Privacy, an optional PIN, and saying it's from you

The puzzle sits behind a private link, so only people you send it to can open it. If you'd like an extra layer, add a short PIN and share it separately, for example in a card handed over at the next session.

Riding groups are, quite rightly, careful about unexpected links, and many volunteers are wary of scams. So say clearly that the link is from you and that it's a thank-you, not a request. A one-line message helps: "This is a thank-you puzzle for the Wednesday team, from Sam's family. It's a photo of Biscuit's ears with a note at the end. It's not asking for anything, and the PIN is in the card." If you're sending it through the organiser, they can pass it on.

How many pieces?

Pieces	Feels like	Typical time
24	a quick brush before tacking up	a few minutes
48	a walk round the arena	around 5–10 minutes
80	a full riding session	around 10–20 minutes
130	a whole morning at the yard	around 20–40 minutes
252	ten years of Wednesday mornings	an hour or more

Times vary with the photo. For a thank-you, finishing beats difficulty; 48 or 80 is a gentle middle. Sand, sky and plain walls are harder, so go lower if most of the picture is one colour.

The leaderboard: only for a team

If you're thanking a whole team of volunteers, you can turn on the leaderboard so everyone solves the same photo, perhaps before the Christmas party. Ask the organiser first; some groups would rather keep things simple. For one volunteer, or a puzzle in memory of a rider or a pony, leave the leaderboard off.

A few note ideas

The note appears when the last piece goes in, so keep it short and warm:

"Every Wednesday for two years, you've walked beside Sam in the wind and the rain. Last week he steered by himself. Thank you, all of you."
"To Helen, who checks every girth twice: thank you for keeping us all safe, and for the best flapjack in the county."
"From the whole group: thank you for a year of early starts, muddy boots and patience. The riders couldn't do it without you."
"To our leader, stepping down after twelve years: thousands of laps of the arena and never a pony out of step. Thank you."
"Mum loved Saturdays at the yard right to the end. Thank you for giving her that."
"To Grandad, who leads Biscuit every week: we're so proud of you, even if you do smell of pony."

How to make one (about a minute of setup)

Open Puzzlify's puzzle maker in a browser: https://puzzlify.app/en/puzzle-maker/
Upload the photo (JPG works best).
Choose a piece count for how much time they might have and how detailed the photo is.
Add your thank-you note and, if you like, a PIN and a leaderboard (for a team of volunteers only).
Preview for free. When you're happy, publish the link with one credit and send it with a message, in a card at the next session, or through the group organiser.

Honest pricing and notes

The preview is free, so you can see exactly what the puzzle looks like before paying anything. You only pay when you publish the link: one credit is €3.99, three credits are €8.99, and Plus is €14.99 a year for ten credits. If you're thanking several people (the leader, the side walkers and the coach, say), three credits works out cheaper per puzzle; for one thank-you, one credit is enough. If money is tight, a card, a message or a few kind words cost nothing and are a perfectly good choice. If you'd like to see it first, the free preview is here: https://puzzlify.app/en/puzzle-maker/

The person who receives the link doesn't need an account, an app or a printer; it opens in a normal web browser. Photos are not used to train AI and are not shared with third parties.

This is a digital jigsaw you play on a screen. It isn't a cardboard puzzle in the post, a printed product or a public puzzle board, and it isn't connected to RDA or any riding group, charity or council. It's also not puzzlify.io (a chess site), Puzzlit, Puzzly or Puzzify, which are different things with similar names. A message in your own words is often what people remember, so the puzzle works best alongside one rather than instead of one.

Ideas that are not a puzzle

Some of the best thank-yous for riding group volunteers cost nothing at all, or go straight to the group:

A handwritten card, from the rider if they'd like to, perhaps with a drawing of their favourite pony.
A donation to the group, in the volunteers' honour, through its proper route; it pays for hay, the farrier and the vet.
Sponsoring a pony's feed or a new saddle, if the group runs a scheme like that.
Volunteering yourself, if you have the time; groups often need side walkers, grooms, fundraisers and people who can help with paperwork, and many have waiting lists of riders hoping for a place.
A short, kind note in the local paper, parish magazine or community newsletter, saying what the group means to your family, without anyone's personal details.
For a long-serving volunteer stepping down, a small book of thank-you notes from riders, families and fellow volunteers, collected by the organiser with permission.

Whatever you send, the most important part is the sentence that sounds like you, written to the people who check the girths twice, walk beside the pony in the drizzle, remember every rider's favourite pony and go home with mud on their jeans, knowing that for one hour on a Wednesday morning, someone felt tall, free and proud on the back of a horse.

Written by the team behind Puzzlify. Not affiliated with RDA UK, RDA Australia, New Zealand RDA, PATH International, CanTRA or any riding group, therapeutic riding centre, charity, council or stable. Not legal, safeguarding, medical, equestrian or privacy advice. Check your group's own rules on gifts, photos, publicity and contact between volunteers, riders and families.