# Privacy Notice **Canonical HTML:** https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/privacy-notice/ **Machine-readable alternate:** https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/privacy-notice/index.md **Page description:** Learn how The Poston Foundation handles website, donor, volunteer, sponsor, partner, and program-related information. > This Markdown file is a machine-readable alternate of the canonical public HTML page. For citation, attribution, and navigation, use the canonical HTML URL above. --- Privacy # Privacy Notice Governance and public information. How The Poston Foundation handles information received through its website, donor, volunteer, sponsor, partner, and program-related interactions. The Poston Foundation ("we," "us," or "our") respects your privacy and is committed to handling personal information in a thoughtful and responsible manner. This Privacy Notice explains how we may collect, use, share, and protect information through our website, www.thepostonfoundation.org, and through related online communications, donation pages, and forms. By visiting our website or submitting information to us online, you acknowledge this Privacy Notice. ## 1. Who We Are The Poston Foundation is a South Carolina nonprofit corporation and IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity. EIN: 85-0559047. Contact Information: The Poston Foundation 1901 Main Street, 18th Floor #4040 Columbia, SC 29201 Email: [carolinacares@thepostonfoundation.org](mailto:carolinacares@thepostonfoundation.org) Phone: [803-365-3054](tel:+18033653054) Website: [www.thepostonfoundation.org](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/) ## 2. Information We May Collect We may collect information that you voluntarily provide to us, including: - your name - email address - mailing address - telephone number - donation information - sponsorship or partnership inquiry information - volunteer inquiry information - information submitted by email, through Fundraise Up, or through other communications - any other information you choose to provide We may also receive limited transaction-related or technical information through third-party service providers that support our website, donation processing, communications, or operations. ## 3. How We Use Information We may use information we collect to: - respond to questions or requests - communicate with donors, supporters, sponsors, volunteers, or community partners - process donations and provide donation receipts - maintain records relating to donations, sponsorships, or inquiries - provide updates about our programs, activities, or fundraising efforts - improve website functionality, communications, and user experience - comply with legal, tax, accounting, reporting, or regulatory obligations - protect the security and integrity of our website and operations ## 4. Donations and Payment Processing Online donations may be processed through Fundraise Up and its payment-processing partners, or through another approved platform identified by the Foundation. When you donate, the applicable provider may collect and process contact, payment, transaction, and other information under its own privacy practices and terms. The Poston Foundation does not directly collect or store full payment-card numbers through this static website. The Foundation may receive donor and transaction information from Fundraise Up or other approved processors for receipting, acknowledgment, stewardship, recordkeeping, compliance, and mission-related communications. ## 5. Website Platform and Third-Party Services This is a static website hosted through Netlify. Netlify may process technical information such as IP address, browser or device information, request details, and security or access logs as part of hosting and delivering the site. Netlify also processes information submitted through the Carolina Cares volunteer interest form so that the Foundation can receive and respond to those submissions. The site embeds Google Maps and links to Yelp, Candid, LinkedIn, and other external social, news, map, and nonprofit-profile services. The site uses Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, Google Ads measurement, and Fundraise Up analytics integrations to understand website activity and measure completed actions. These services may process information such as pages visited, interaction events, referring information, browser or device details, advertising click identifiers, and approximate location derived from an IP address under their applicable privacy practices. The Foundation does not intentionally send names, email addresses, phone numbers, or free-text form messages through its website analytics data layer. ## 6. Cookies and Similar Technologies Netlify, Google, Fundraise Up, and other third-party services may use cookies, browser storage, log data, or similar technologies to support site delivery, security, performance, analytics, donation processing, attribution, and service functionality. You may be able to manage some cookie preferences through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies or technologies may affect website functionality. Website forms may include those attribution values with the form submission so the Foundation can understand which campaigns generated legitimate inquiries or volunteer interest. The site also sends privacy-safe events through Google Tag Manager for actions such as completed forms, calls-to-action, document downloads, and qualified on-site engagement. The analytics event layer is designed not to include a visitor's name, email address, phone number, or free-text message. When a visitor arrives through an advertising or campaign link, the site may temporarily preserve privacy-safe attribution values in browser session storage so those values are not lost if the visitor moves to another page before submitting a form. These values may include UTM parameters, Google Ads click identifiers such as GCLID, GBRAID, or WBRAID, the original landing page, and the referring page. ## 6A. Advertising Attribution and Conversion Measurement ## 7. Email Communications and Inquiries The public site does not provide a Foundation-hosted account system. It does provide Foundation contact, sponsorship, and Carolina Cares volunteer interest forms processed through Netlify. If you contact us through a website form, by email, by phone, through Fundraise Up, or through another linked service, we may retain your communication and contact information to respond, maintain records, and continue communications where appropriate. If you sign up to receive updates or otherwise provide your email address, we may send you mission-related communications, subject to any unsubscribe options we make available. ## 8. Donor Information We value donor privacy. We may use donor information for receipting, acknowledgment, stewardship, recordkeeping, compliance, and mission-related communications. We do not sell donor personal information or donor lists for unrelated third-party marketing purposes. ## 9. Volunteer, Sponsor, and Partner Information If you submit an inquiry about volunteering, sponsorship, partnership, or community coordination, we may use the information you provide to evaluate and respond to your request, communicate with you, coordinate suitable activities when available, and maintain internal records. A volunteer interest submission may include contact information, location, organization or group information, general availability, areas of interest, and other information you choose to provide. ## 10. Program-Related Privacy and Dignity The Poston Foundation seeks to approach community-facing work with dignity and care. We do not intend to publicly disclose sensitive personal information about program participants or beneficiaries through our website without an appropriate basis to do so. If photographs, testimonials, stories, or similar materials are used in connection with our work, we seek to do so respectfully and with appropriate permission where needed. ## 11. How We May Share Information We may share information: - with service providers supporting our website, fundraising, communications, or administration - with accountants, legal counsel, auditors, or other professional advisors as reasonably necessary - when required by law, court order, subpoena, regulatory inquiry, or lawful governmental request - when reasonably necessary to protect rights, safety, property, or operations - in connection with recordkeeping, tax compliance, reporting, or grant administration We do not share personal information more broadly than reasonably necessary for these purposes. ## 12. Data Security We make reasonable efforts, appropriate to our size and resources, to protect information from unauthorized access, misuse, loss, or disclosure. However, no website, email system, or electronic transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure, and users should exercise appropriate caution when submitting information online. ## 13. Data Retention We may retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary for charitable operations, donor stewardship, volunteer coordination, legal compliance, tax recordkeeping, dispute resolution, security, or other legitimate organizational purposes. ## 14. Your Choices You may contact us to: - ask questions about this Privacy Notice - request that we update or correct contact information you submitted to us - opt out of certain future communications, where applicable Please note that we may still retain information as necessary for legal, tax, security, or recordkeeping reasons. ## 15. Links to Other Websites Our website may contain links to third-party websites, platforms, or donation pages. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of third-party sites. You should review the privacy notice of any third-party site you visit. ## 16. Children's Privacy Our website is not intended to knowingly collect personal information from children through online forms without appropriate oversight. If you believe a child has submitted personal information through our website without appropriate authorization, please contact us so we can review the matter. ## 17. Changes to This Privacy Notice We may update this Privacy Notice from time to time. Any updated version may be posted on this page with a revised effective date. ## 18. Contact Us If you have questions about this Privacy Notice or our website practices, please contact: The Poston Foundation 1901 Main Street, 18th Floor #4040 Columbia, SC 29201 [carolinacares@thepostonfoundation.org](mailto:carolinacares@thepostonfoundation.org) [803-365-3054](tel:+18033653054) [www.thepostonfoundation.org](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/) Practical privacy information ## Find the information relevant to your visit. A visitor may browse program information, open a funding PDF, watch a campaign video, use a map, send an inquiry, or follow a donation link. These activities involve different parts of the website and, where embedded, third-party services. The sections above explain the Foundation’s privacy notice for those interactions. When contacting the Foundation, include only the details needed to explain the request. A sponsorship inquiry can usually begin with an organization name, contact details, proposed support, and timing. An archive inquiry can begin with a description and source information. Sensitive financial, identity, or medical documents are not needed in a general website message. For questions about a program record, donor information, or a website submission, [contact the Foundation](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/contact/) and describe the issue. For giving terms and gift questions, see the [Donation Policy](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/donation-policy/).