Privacy Policy

Charity Food Ministry (“Charity Food Ministry,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is the food relief ministry of Christian Home Baptist Church, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charity operating in Chester, South Carolina. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect through charityfoodministry.org and in the course of our programs, how we use and protect it, and the choices you have.

We wrote this policy in plain language on purpose. Our donors and the neighbors we serve deserve to understand it without a lawyer.

1. Information We Collect

We collect only what we need to do our work. Depending on how you interact with us, that may include:

• Donor information. Your name, mailing address, email address, telephone number, donation amount, designated program, and whether your gift is one-time or recurring. If you request an acknowledgment letter for tax purposes, we retain the record needed to produce it.
• Payment information. Card and bank details are collected and processed directly by our third-party payment processors. We do not receive, store, or have access to your full card number, CVV, or bank account credentials.
• Volunteer information. Your name, contact details, availability, emergency contact, and — for volunteers who drive delivery routes — confirmation of a valid driver's license and insurance.
• Program participant information. We deliberately keep this minimal. Our food distributions require no identification, no proof of income, and no application. For home delivery routes and the weekend backpack program, we record only what is operationally necessary, such as a delivery address, household size, a phone number, and noted food allergies.
• Communications you send us. Messages submitted through our contact form, by email, or by mail, including any information you choose to include in them.
• Newsletter subscriptions. The email address you provide.
• Technical information. Standard web server and analytics data such as browser type, device type, approximate geographic region, referring page, and pages viewed. This information is aggregated and is not used to identify you personally.

We do not knowingly collect Social Security numbers, government identification numbers, health records, or immigration status from anyone. Please do not send this information to us.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information described above only for legitimate charitable purposes, including to:

• Process your donation and issue a written acknowledgment or year-end giving summary for your tax records;
• Administer recurring gifts and respond to requests to change or cancel them;
• Coordinate volunteer schedules, program logistics, deliveries, and food drives;
• Respond to your questions, requests for assistance, and partnership inquiries;
• Send program updates, impact reports, and appeals to supporters who wish to receive them;
• Report accurate, aggregated program statistics to the public, our board, grant-makers, and the IRS;
• Maintain the security and integrity of our website and comply with applicable law.

3. Donor Privacy: We Do Not Sell or Share Donor Lists

This is the commitment we consider most important in this policy. We never sell, rent, trade, lease, or otherwise share our donor list or any individual donor's personal information with any outside party — not with commercial companies, not with data brokers, and not with other nonprofit or religious organizations, even those whose work we support.

We recognize your right to remain anonymous. If you ask that your gift not be publicly acknowledged in any listing, newsletter, or report, we will honor that request without question. Conversely, we will not publish your name as a supporter without a reasonable basis to believe you are comfortable with it.

We will disclose donor or participant information only in these narrow circumstances:

• To service providers who need it strictly to perform a function on our behalf (for example, a payment processor or email delivery provider), and only under an obligation to keep it confidential;
• When required by law, subpoena, court order, or lawful government request, or as required in filings with the Internal Revenue Service or the South Carolina Secretary of State;
• To protect against imminent harm to a person, or to investigate suspected fraud or a violation of our Terms of Use;
• With your express permission.

4. Cookies and Website Analytics

Our website uses a small number of cookies and similar technologies. Strictly necessary cookies keep the site functioning — for example, remembering the contents of your donation basket as you move between pages. Some information, including your basket, is stored locally in your own browser rather than on our servers, and clearing your browser data will remove it.

We may also use privacy-respecting analytics to understand which pages are useful and where visitors have trouble. This data is aggregated and does not identify individual visitors. We do not use cookies to build advertising profiles, and we do not sell website data.

You can block or delete cookies at any time through your browser settings, and you may enable a “Do Not Track” signal. Note that disabling cookies may prevent the donation basket from working correctly.

5. Third-Party Payment Processors

All online donations are processed by established, PCI-DSS-compliant third-party payment processors. When you enter payment details, that information is transmitted directly to the processor over an encrypted connection. Charity Food Ministry never sees or stores your full card number, expiration and security code combination, or bank credentials.

Your use of a payment processor is also governed by that company's own privacy policy and terms, which we encourage you to review. We are not responsible for the independent practices of these providers, though we select them with care and use only providers with a strong security record.

6. Children's Privacy

Our website is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information online from children under the age of 13, consistent with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). If you believe a child under 13 has submitted personal information to us through this website, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

Two related notes about our programs. First, volunteers under the age of 18 must have a parent or guardian provide and sign off on their contact information. Second, children who receive food through our weekend backpack program are enrolled by school counselors or by a parent or guardian; we keep only the minimum information needed to deliver the food, and we do not publish or share the names of participating children.

7. Photography and Media

We sometimes photograph distributions, volunteer days, and community meals to share our work honestly with supporters. Signage is posted at our distribution site letting attendees know that photography may occur. If you do not want to be photographed, or if you see an image of yourself or your child on our website or materials and want it removed, tell any volunteer or email us and we will remove it. We do not identify program participants by name without written permission.

8. Data Retention

We keep personal information only as long as it serves a purpose or is required by law:

• Donation records are retained for a minimum of seven years to satisfy IRS substantiation, audit, and recordkeeping requirements applicable to tax-exempt organizations.
• Volunteer records are retained for the duration of service and for three years afterward, for insurance and reference purposes.
• Program participant records for delivery routes and backpacks are retained only while the household is enrolled, plus one program year, and are then deleted.
• Newsletter subscriptions are retained until you unsubscribe.
• Contact form messages are retained for up to two years.

Records are stored in access-controlled systems, and paper records at our site are kept in a locked location. Only our Principal Officer and specifically authorized volunteers have access to donor and participant records. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take these responsibilities seriously.

9. Your Rights and Choices

You may, at any time and free of charge:

• Ask what we hold. Request a copy of the personal information we have about you.
• Correct it. Ask us to fix inaccurate or outdated information.
• Ask us to delete it. We will honor deletion requests except where a record must be retained by law, such as a donation receipt within the IRS retention period.
• Opt out of mail and email. Use the unsubscribe link in any email, or simply tell us. We will remove you from appeals and newsletters. We will still send transactional messages such as a receipt for a gift you have made.
• Give anonymously. Ask that your name never appear in any public acknowledgment.

To exercise any of these rights, email admin@charityfoodministry.org or write to us at the address below. We respond to requests within thirty days. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under state privacy law; we extend the choices described above to all of our supporters regardless of residence.

10. Links to Other Websites

Our site links to outside resources, including the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search and the websites of partner organizations. We do not control those sites and are not responsible for their content or privacy practices. Please review the privacy policy of any website you visit from a link on ours.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or the law. When we do, we will revise the effective date at the top of this page. If we make a material change to how we handle personal information, we will post a clear notice on this page and, where appropriate, notify supporters by email. Your continued use of our website after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

12. How to Contact Us

Questions, concerns, and requests about this policy are welcome and are read by a person, not a queue.

Charity Food Ministry
Christian Home Baptist Church d/b/a Charity Food Ministry
P.O. Box 26
Chester, SC 29706
Email: admin@charityfoodministry.org
Attention: Antonio Davidson, Principal Officer

Distribution site: 669 Charity Road, Chester, SC 29706
EIN: 93-4499426 • Verify our status through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search.