Heart of Grace, Inc. (“Heart of Grace,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is a Nebraska 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 83-2065840) dedicated to supporting families with children in long-term hospital stays. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information when you visit our website at www.theheartofgrace.org, make a donation, contact us, or interact with us in any way.

By using our website, you agree to the practices described in this policy.

We may update this policy from time to time. If we make significant changes, we will post the revised policy on our website with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this page periodically.

Information We Collect

Information You Provide Directly

We collect information you voluntarily provide when you interact with us, including:

• Donations: Your name, email address, mailing address, and payment information when you make a donation through our website. Payment transactions are processed by our third-party payment processor, WePay (a Chase company). Heart of Grace does not store your full credit card number, bank account number, or other sensitive payment details on our systems.
• Contact forms and email: Your name, email address, and any information you include when you reach out to us.
• Volunteer inquiries: Your name, contact information, and any details you share when expressing interest in volunteering.
• Event registration: Your name and contact information if you register for a Heart of Grace event or fundraiser.
• Newsletter or email list: Your name and email address if you sign up for communications from us.

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, certain information may be collected automatically through cookies and similar technologies, including:

• Your IP address and general geographic location (city/region level).
• Browser type, operating system, and device information.
• Pages visited, time spent on pages, and referring website.
• Cookies and similar tracking identifiers used by our website platform and any analytics services.

Our website is hosted by Hostinger and built on WordPress. These platforms may use cookies or collect technical data as part of their standard operation. You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings.

Information About Families We Serve

When families are referred to our programs by hospital partners, we collect only the minimum information necessary to fulfill a referral: the family’s last name (or initials), number and ages of children, hospital name, referring staff member, and date of service. We do not collect diagnosis, treatment, insurance, or Social Security information. Heart of Grace is not a HIPAA-covered entity but voluntarily adheres to privacy best practices regarding the families we serve.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To process and acknowledge your donations, including issuing tax receipts.
• To respond to your inquiries, volunteer interest, or other communications.
• To send you updates about our mission, programs, events, and fundraising needs (with your consent and the option to unsubscribe at any time).
• To fulfill our charitable programs, including delivering Family Care Bags and administering the Family Bill Relief Program.
• To improve our website and understand how visitors use it.
• To comply with legal obligations, including IRS recordkeeping requirements for tax-exempt organizations.

Information Sharing and Disclosure

Heart of Grace does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We will never share your donor information with other organizations for their marketing purposes.

We may share limited information in the following circumstances:

• Payment processing: Donation payment information is transmitted to WePay (Chase) to process your transaction. WePay’s handling of your data is governed by their own privacy policy.
• Service providers: We may share information with service providers who help us operate our website or fulfill our mission (such as our web hosting provider), only to the extent necessary for them to perform those services.
• Legal requirements: We may disclose information when required by law, court order, or government regulation, or when we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights or the safety of others.
• Aggregate data: We may share anonymized, aggregate information (such as the total number of website visitors or donors) for reporting purposes. This data cannot be used to identify any individual.

Donor Privacy

Heart of Grace respects the privacy of our donors. We will not publicly disclose your name, donation amount, or contact information without your express permission. If you wish to remain anonymous, please let us know and we will honor that request to the fullest extent possible while meeting our legal reporting obligations.

Donor records, including name, address, donation amount, and date, are retained for a minimum of seven (7) years in accordance with IRS recordkeeping requirements for 501(c)(3) organizations.

Data Security

We take reasonable precautions to protect the information we collect. Our website uses SSL/TLS encryption (HTTPS) to secure data transmitted between your browser and our site. Payment transactions are processed through WePay’s secure, PCI-compliant infrastructure and are not stored on our systems.

While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to implementing and maintaining safeguards appropriate for an organization of our size and scope.

Third-Party Links and Services

Our website may contain links to third-party websites or services, including social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. These sites have their own privacy policies and practices, which we do not control. We encourage you to review the privacy policy of any third-party site you visit. Heart of Grace is not responsible for the privacy practices of external websites.

Children’s Privacy

Our website is not directed at children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 through our website. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected such information, we will take prompt steps to delete it. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information through our website, please contact us at info@theheartofgrace.org.

Please note that this provision applies to data collected through our website. When Heart of Grace serves families through our programs, limited non-identifying information about children (ages, first names or initials) may be collected from hospital referral partners for the sole purpose of fulfilling our charitable mission, as described in the “Information About Families We Serve” section above.

Your Choices

You have the following choices regarding your personal information:

• Opt out of communications: You may unsubscribe from our email communications at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email or by contacting us at info@theheartofgrace.org.
• Request access or correction: You may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you, or ask us to correct any inaccuracies, by contacting us.
• Request deletion: You may ask us to delete your personal information, subject to any legal retention requirements (such as IRS recordkeeping obligations for donation records).
• Cookies: You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect certain features of our website.

Changes to This Policy

We may revise this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. When we do, we will update the effective date at the top of this page. We encourage you to check this page periodically. Your continued use of our website after any changes indicates your acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your information, please contact us:

Heart of Grace, Inc.
806 Fort Street
Papillion, NE 68046
Email: info@theheartofgrace.org
Website: www.theheartofgrace.org