Privacy policy

Introduction

This privacy policy document describes the policies and practices of the Little River United Church of Christ (LRUCC) regarding personal information that may be revealed by the LRUCC website and that which may be obtained by LRUCC because of peoples’ interactions with the LRUCC website.  LRUCC takes seriously the need to ensure the confidentiality of all personal, private information that we are entrusted with.  

Information Revealed by the Website

In portraying the vibrant LRUCC congregation, its programs, and its activities, the website necessarily portrays real persons participating in our church life.   

Naming Individuals – Except for the specific instances noted below, no individuals are identified by name on the public portion of the website or on items that can be directly accessed from the website.  In all such cases, the individuals have consented to have their names revealed on the website.  (The password-protected “Members Information” area of the website that contains more personal information is discussed separately below.)

Individuals may be named on the website in the following situations.  

  • The staff is identified by name.  Brief biographical information is provided for some staff persons.
  • Some of the lay leadership of the church may be identified by name.
  • There may be announcements for programs or activities that mention a leader or coordinator by name.  
  • Some articles in the newsletter, Currents, that is accessible on the website may mention a person by name.

Photographs – LRUCC will not publicly publish a photograph that has an individually identifiable person, unless that person, or the person’s parent in the case of a minor, has granted permission by a signed photo release form that is on file in the church office.  This specifically includes any photographs on the website and on the LRUCC Facebook page.  This does not preclude the use of photographs with groups of people whose face is not toward the camera or who are far enough immersed in the crowd that the persons are not individually identifiable.  Members and friends of LRUCC are encouraged to grant permission for use of photographs, but the church does not pressure people to do so against their will.

Personal Information Gained From Persons Accessing the Website

LRUCC does not collect personal information from a person only browsing any part of the website or an embedded link.  

LRUCC uses all available information that is voluntarily shared by an individual to facilitate ministry to that individual and also to support and enhance the programs and ministries of LRUCC.  However, LRUCC is critically attuned to the need for certain personal information to be confidentially kept by an individual, typically but not exclusively clergy, or a select group of people necessary for processing the information.  As such, individuals sharing personal information have an opportunity to control the extent of dissemination of the information they share.  

Voluntary actions suggested by the website, or an embedded link, are some of the ways that people may provide personal information to LRUCC.  Name, address, and contact information may be incorporated into LRUCC’s records and will be maintained with the same privacy policies and practices as similar information from other sources.  All other information from these voluntary actions will be used solely for the action intended by the individual.  Specific examples of such voluntary actions are:

  • Making an on-line donation to LRUCC.  This uses a secure link with a third-party company, Vanco Services, Inc.,
  • Registering a child to participate in an LRUCC activity or program, using the “Children and Youth Registration and Release Form”, 
  • Initiating an e-mail to an LRUCC person using a link on the website,
  • Requesting to be added to the distribution list of the Currents newsletter,
  • Commenting on content of either the Facebook or Twitter threads, and
  • Completing and submitting a survey that may be solicited occasionally.

In addition to the above on-line interactions that a person may have with the website or an embedded link, the website may have other information gathering forms that can be downloaded, printed, and submitted for a specific requested purpose.  Information from those will be handled consistent with the handling of personal information from other sources.

Information in the “Members Only” Portion of the Website

The LRUCC website has a password-protected Members Only section that contains detailed information about our congregation and the support of LRUCC’s programs and activities.  Two portions of this part of the website will have personal information.  

LRUCC Directory

A directory will list the names of all LRUCC members and all LRUCC “Friends” who agree to be listed.  The directory will provide the address, telephone number(s), and e-mail address(es) for all persons listed, unless the individuals request that the some of that information not be published in the directory.  The directory will also list the Community of Care for each LRUCC member, and may name non-LRUCC members, including children, in the immediate households of the people listed, if requested by the people involved.

Other Documents

Personally identifiable information may appear in other documents in the Members Only section. Such information could include mention of names, and perhaps contact information, in published organizational, policy, or scheduling documents.