Effective Date : November 4, 2021

The COPE Foundation (“COPE” or “we”) takes your privacy seriously. Protecting your privacy is a key part of our mission, enabling us to provide more meaningful help and support to grieving individuals in need. We are dedicated to handling your personal information with care and respect.

We have prepared this COPE Privacy Statement and Cookie Policy (the “Privacy Policy”) to help you understand how we collect, use, share, and protect personal information obtained through the COPE website, www.copefoundation.org (the “Site”), other COPE websites that we operate, and through the support programs and other services we provide (collectively, the “Services”). This Privacy Policy does not apply to websites or applications that do not include a link to this policy. This Privacy Policy is incorporated into our Terms and Conditions of Use. Please note that while COPE volunteers commit to complying with this Privacy Policy with regard to the data shared through our Services, volunteers are not employees, and COPE is not responsible for the acts or omissions of any volunteer. Please read these documents carefully and if you do not agree to our policies, please do not use our Services.

I. What Personal Information Do We Collect?

A. From Our Volunteers
When you apply to volunteer with us, we require that you provide us with the following types of personal information: name, email address, telephone number, mailing address, the preferred method of contact, information about your volunteer interests, information about your background and skills, and additional information about your interests or which you may choose to provide.

B. From Our Support Group and Hotline Participants
When you request Support Group help from us through our online intake form, Memory Wall, the COPE Hotline, or otherwise, we require that you provide us with the following types of personal information: name, email address, telephone number, mailing address, state of residency, biographical information and emergency contact information. We require that you provide information about your Loved One, including your loved one’s name, relationship to you, date of birth, date of passing, and a brief description of how Loved One passed). Finally, in the course of providing our Services to you, we may collect other information you may choose to provide.

C. From Our Donors
When you donate to COPE through our donation page (copefoundation.org/make-a-donation) either as an individual or on behalf of an institution, we require or request that you provide us with the following types of personal information: name, email address, telephone number, mailing address, city, state, postal code, and country, donation amount, gift frequency, and credit card or bank account information. We may also collect tribute information, comments, and other information if you choose to provide it.

D. From Our Newsletter Subscribers
When you subscribe to our newsletter on our newsletter signup page or otherwise, we require that you provide us with the following types of personal information: name, email address, telephone number, mailing address, city, state, postal code, and country. We will also collect your mobile phone number if you choose to provide it to us. We will use this information to provide you with updates concerning COPE or our programs, service events, volunteer opportunities, and partners.

E. Tracking Data & Cookie Policy
We use cookies and other technologies to help compile browser statistics, such as log file information (i.e., Internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, browser language, pages viewed, and the date and time of a site visit). We may combine this data with the aforementioned collected information, which may identify you. We make limited use of cookies and other online tracking technologies to understand visitor activity on our Services, and to hold certain information about your visits to help improve your experience while using our Services. A cookie is a text file sent by a web server and placed on your computer by your web browser. Cookies can be divided into two different types: session and persistent. Session cookies differ from persistent cookies primarily in that session cookies are temporary and expire and are normally typically deleted when you close your browser. Persistent cookies, in contrast, remain stored on your computer after you close your browser until they are deleted either because they expire or you delete them. COPE uses session cookies and persistent cookies in connection with providing our Services and may provide these in an anonymized form to our service provider, Automatic, whose privacy policy is here. Cookies are often used in conjunction with other Internet technologies to understand behavior on the Internet.

None of the above technologies are strictly necessary to access our Services. You may reset your browser to refuse all cookies or to allow your browser to alert you when a cookie is set, however, certain parts of the Services may function differently and not as well and you may not be able to use some portions of our Services. For more information about how to manage your cookies preferences, you should use the “help” menu of your web browser or explore the customer support sections of your web browser. Please note that you need to configure each browser on each device that you use if you wish to opt-out or block some or all cookies. If you do not wish to receive advertising cookies, you may wish to visit the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) website by clicking here and the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) website here.

II. How Do We Use Personal Information?

We use personal information to process requests made through our Services, such as requests to register as a volunteer, requests for help and support, and questions or comments submitted through our Services.

For our Volunteers: We use this information to contact you and as part of our efforts to help match you with projects that may align with your skills, interests, and background.

For our Support Group and Hotline Participants: We use this information to provide the Services to you and tailor our help and support to your needs.

For our Donors: We use this information to process or contact you regarding your donation.

For our Newsletter Subscribers: We use this information to provide you with our newsletters and updates.

You may opt-out of receiving email communications from us at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” or “manage my email preferences” links located at the bottom of these communications.

In addition to the above, we use the personal information we collect for:

  • Providing Our Services. We may use personal information about you to help meet the needs of grieving individuals who come to us for help and support.
  • Fulfillment of Requests. We may use personal information about you to fulfill the purpose for which such information was provided (e.g., to match you to a project for our volunteers or to respond to your requests or inquiries)
  • Additional Communications. We may use the personal information submitted with your applications to contact you with important information about ongoing projects or about content, features, opportunities, or services that may be of interest to you.
  • Internal Operations and Analysis. We may also use personal information about you for our internal operational purposes, such as data analysis, audits, enhancing or modifying our Services, and so forth.
  • Fulfilling Our Legal Obligations or to Protect our Rights or Property. Where required, we may use personal information about you to comply with our legal, regulatory, and contractual obligations, or to protect our rights or property.

We may combine information that you provide to us or information that we collect automatically through our Services with other information we obtain.

III. How Do We Share Personal Information?

We may share your information in the event that it is necessary to fulfill these purposes:

  • With members of our volunteer network for operational and analytical purposes, to fulfill requests, and to provide the Services;
  • With companies and organizations who work on our behalf to provide and support COPE and enable us to fulfill our mission and values; and,
  • With law enforcement or other government agencies to comply with court orders, legal processes, or respond to government or regulatory requests, or otherwise protect the safety of our volunteers or others.
  • We may share personal information, such as contact information of volunteers or other data assets, in the event of a merger, acquisition, or other reorganization, such as if we combine with another non-profit organization.

IV. How Do We Protect Personal Information?

We have adopted reasonable security measures designed to protect the security and confidentiality of personal information we collect about you and your Loved One, as appropriate. Our volunteers commit to comply with our security protocol, however, COPE volunteers are not employees, and COPE is not responsible for the acts or omissions of any volunteer. When you share information with other volunteers or our third party partners, you do so at your own risk. Please also be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed secure, particularly on the Internet. Use caution in determining what information you wish to share, and how. We also rely on you to protect the safety and security of your information. Where we have given you (or where you have chosen) a password for access to certain parts of our Services, please keep this password confidential. You are responsible for not sharing this information with anyone.

V. What Are Your Choices Regarding Your Personal Information?

As COPE is a non-profit organization, we are not subject to laws regulating for-profit entities such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”). Nonetheless, we take your privacy choices very seriously. You may request that we correct, update, provide access, or delete the personal information you have submitted to us, or restrict or object to COPE’s processing of your data, by contacting us using the information listed below. We do not sell personal information. However, please remember that we do not control the data practices of third parties that you may share information with when volunteering or interacting with COPE. If you have signed up to receive emails from us, you may opt-out of such email communications anytime by clicking “unsubscribe” at the bottom of these communications.

VI. What Are Some Other Issues We Consider In Handling Personal Information?

Children’s Information
Our Services are not intended for children under 13 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect or store personal information from such individuals except in specific contexts in which a separate notice shall be provided. If you believe that we may have collected personal information from a child under 13 years of age through the Site or in another unintended manner, please contact us by using the information contained in the “How Should You Contact Us?” section below.

International Transfers
We are based in the United States. The information you submit to us and that we automatically collect as a result of your using the Services will be transferred to the United States, where the privacy and data protection rules may differ from those in your country. By using our Services, you consent to the international transfer to, and storage of, your personal information in the United States.

Accessibility
We are committed to ensuring that our communications are accessible to people with disabilities. To make accessibility-related requests or report barriers, please contact us by using the information contained in the “How Should You Contact Us?” section below.

Data Retention
We will retain your personal information for as long as it is necessary and relevant to our organization and mission.

Third-Party Website Links
Our Services may contain links to other third-party websites operated and maintained by third parties that we do not own or control. Those websites are governed by their own privacy policies and not this Privacy Policy. Any information you provide to a third-party web or mobile site or app will be governed by the terms of each site’s or app’s privacy statement. We have no responsibility or control over the content, actions, or policies of third-party sites.

Changes To This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy at any time to reflect changes in our Services and practices, and any changes will become effective upon the “Effective Date” posted on this page.

VII. How Should You Contact Us?

If you have any further inquiries about our Privacy Policy or practices or wish to make a data protection request, please contact us at privacy@copefoundation.com. You may also contact us at:

COPE Foundation
PO Box 1251
Melville, NY 11747
(516) 832-COPE (2673)

Last Updated: November 4, 2021