Privacy Policy

  • A.R.E. Peer Services (also referred to as “A.R.E.,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and protect information when you visit arepeerservices.org, contact us, make a donation, purchase merchandise, sign up for optional communications, or interact with our public digital services.

    This policy applies to information handled through our public website and related public-facing services. It does not replace any separate confidentiality notice, consent, authorization, or legal protection that may apply to peer-support, behavioral-health, substance-use, employment, volunteer, or other service records.

  • We may collect the following categories of information, depending on how you interact with us:

    ·        Contact information, such as your name, email address, telephone number, mailing address, and information you submit through a contact form.

    ·        Donation information, such as donor identity, contact details, donation amount, campaign, payment status, and receipt information. Payment-card information is processed by our payment providers and is not intended to be stored directly by A.R.E.

    ·        Store and order information, such as billing and shipping details, products ordered, transaction status, customer-service communications, and fulfillment information.

    ·        Communication preferences, including newsletter or fundraising-message subscriptions and opt-out requests.

    ·        Technical and usage information, which may include IP address, browser or device information, referring pages, pages visited, approximate location, cookies, and similar technologies used by our website platform and any enabled analytics tools.

    ·        Authorized media, such as photographs, video, audio, testimonials, or success stories provided or recorded with appropriate permission..

  • Please do not use our general website contact form, social-media messages, donation forms, or store checkout to send medical records, diagnoses, detailed treatment information, substance-use-treatment information, Social Security numbers, passwords, or other highly sensitive information. These public-facing tools may not be designed for confidential clinical or emergency communications.

    If you need peer-support or program information, please call the appropriate A.R.E. location. If you are experiencing an emergency, call 911 or the appropriate emergency service. Website and social-media messages are not monitored as emergency services.

  • ·        Operate, maintain, secure, and improve our website and public digital services.

    ·        Respond to questions, requests, volunteer inquiries, and other communications.

    ·        Process and administer donations, provide receipts, maintain donor records, and report on fundraising activity.

    ·        Process store orders, arrange payment and fulfillment, provide order updates, and handle customer service, returns, or refunds under applicable policies.

    ·        Send optional newsletters, organizational updates, fundraising appeals, event information, or sponsorship opportunities where permitted.

    ·        Measure website, campaign, donation, and communication performance.

    ·        Create and publish authorized organizational media and community-impact communications.

    Prevent fraud, protect accounts, investigate security incidents, enforce policies, and comply with legal obligations

  • A.R.E. uses Zeffy to provide online donation and fundraising functions. When you select a donation link or submit a Zeffy form, Zeffy collects and processes information necessary to complete and administer the transaction under its own privacy policy and terms. Zeffy provides relevant donor and transaction information to A.R.E. so that we can acknowledge, administer, record, and report your contribution.

    Donation confirmations, receipts, and other transaction-related messages may be sent even if you opt out of optional marketing or fundraising communications. Donation refund eligibility is determined under A.R.E.’s approved Donation and Refund Policy. [INSERT LINK WHEN PUBLISHED].

  • Our website and online store are hosted through Squarespace. Store payments are processed through Stripe. Printful may receive order and shipping information needed to produce, fulfill, and deliver merchandise. These providers process information under their respective privacy policies and terms, and may use their own service providers to support payment, fraud prevention, hosting, fulfillment, delivery, and customer service.

    A.R.E. does not intend to receive or store your complete payment-card number. Please review our separate Return and Refund Policy for merchandise. [INSERT LINK WHEN PUBLISHED].

  • A donation, purchase, or service inquiry does not automatically mean that you have agreed to receive every optional A.R.E. mailing. We may send messages necessary to complete or administer a transaction or respond to a request. Optional newsletters, promotional messages, fundraising updates, or similar mass communications will include an unsubscribe method when applicable.

    You may unsubscribe using the link in an optional email or contact us using the information below. We may retain limited information on a suppression list so that we can honor your request. Opting out of optional communications does not prevent transaction confirmations, donation receipts, order notices, safety notices, or direct responses that you requested.

  • Squarespace and other enabled service providers may use cookies and similar technologies to operate the website, remember settings, secure transactions, understand website use, and measure campaigns. Some cookies may be necessary for website, cart, checkout, security, or accessibility functions. Other analytics or advertising technologies, if enabled, may require user choice through a cookie banner or preference tool.

    You may use our available cookie controls and your browser settings to manage cookies. Blocking necessary cookies may affect website or store functionality. [VERIFY AND INSERT A LINK TO COOKIE SETTINGS, IF AVAILABLE].

  • We may share information only as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including with:

    ·        Website, donation, payment, store, fulfillment, email, analytics, security, cloud-storage, design, and video-editing providers, including Squarespace, Zeffy, Stripe, Printful, and Canva as applicable.

    ·        Shipping carriers, professional advisers, auditors, insurers, regulators, law enforcement, or government agencies when appropriate or legally required.

    ·        A successor organization in connection with a lawful merger, restructuring, asset transfer, or similar organizational change, subject to applicable confidentiality requirements.

    A.R.E. does not sell personal information for money. [LEADERSHIP MUST VERIFY WHETHER ANY ENABLED ANALYTICS OR ADVERTISING TECHNOLOGY COULD BE CONSIDERED “SALE,” “SHARING,” OR TARGETED ADVERTISING UNDER AN APPLICABLE PRIVACY LAW BEFORE PUBLISHING THIS SENTENCE.]

  • With appropriate authorization, A.R.E. may collect, edit, and publish photographs, video, audio, testimonials, and success stories for community education, organizational updates, events, fundraising, and public communications. We may use cloud-based design and video-editing providers, such as Canva, to prepare authorized content for publication.

    Our website may link to A.R.E.’s social-media pages or to campaigns shared through social media. When you leave our website or interact directly with a social platform, that platform’s privacy policy and settings apply. A.R.E. does not upload client or member contact lists to social-media advertising systems as part of its current practice. [REVERIFY BEFORE EACH POLICY REVIEW].

  • We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards appropriate to the information and our operations. However, no website, email, cloud service, or internet transmission can be guaranteed completely secure.

    We retain information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including transaction, tax, accounting, donor, order, consent, suppression, security, and legal-record requirements. Retention periods may differ by record type and applicable obligation. We securely delete or de-identify information when appropriate and reasonably feasible.

  • Our public website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information online from children under 13 without authorization required by applicable law. If you believe a child has submitted personal information through our public website, please contact us so that we can review the matter.

  • You may contact us to ask about personal information you provided through our public website, correct contact information, withdraw from optional communications, or request deletion where appropriate. We may need to verify your identity. Some information may be retained when required for transactions, tax records, legal obligations, security, suppression lists, or the protection of A.R.E. and others.

    Withdrawing a media authorization may not require A.R.E. to retrieve or destroy materials already lawfully published or distributed. The applicable signed authorization and law will control.

  • Our website may link to Zeffy, social-media platforms, maps, community resources, or other third-party websites. Their privacy practices are governed by their own policies. A link does not mean that A.R.E. controls the third party’s privacy or security practices.

  • We may update this Privacy Policy as our services, technology, vendors, or legal obligations change. We will post the revised policy on this page and update the effective date. Material changes may be communicated through additional reasonable methods when appropriate.

15. Contact Us

Questions or privacy requests may be directed to:

A.R.E., Inc. / A.R.E. Peer Services

Attn: [INSERT PRIVACY CONTACT OR JOB TITLE]

334 West Franklin Avenue, Jackson, Michigan 49201

Telephone: (517) 788-9147

Email: [INSERT APPROVED PRIVACY EMAIL ADDRESS]