Last Updated: April 15, 2025

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​Welcome to Grow Closer. We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of our visitors and members. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and protect your personal information when you visit our website, subscribe to our communications, participate in our activities online, or otherwise interact with us.

 

By using our website, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

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Information We Collect

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We collect information to provide and improve our services to you. The types of information we collect include:

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• Information You Provide Directly:

  • Contact Information: When you subscribe to our newsletter, use our contact forms, register for events (if applicable), or communicate with us, we may collect your name, email address, phone number, and potentially your physical address.

  • Donation Information: If you choose to donate through our website, we may collect your name, email address, and billing address. Financial information (like credit/debit card numbers) is typically processed directly by our third-party payment processors (e.g., [Name Payment Processor(s) if known, like Stripe, PayPal]), and we generally do not store this sensitive financial data on our servers. We receive confirmation of your donation and your contact details for acknowledgment and record-keeping.

  • Communication Content: Any information you voluntarily share when you contact us via email or forms.​

• Information Collected Automatically:​​​​

  • Usage Data: When you access the website, we may automatically collect certain information about your device and browsing activity. This can include your IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, pages visited on our site, time spent on pages, and other diagnostic data.

  • Cookies and Tracking Technologies: We use cookies (small files stored on your device) and similar tracking technologies to track activity on our website, hold certain information, and improve your user experience. See Section ("Cookies and Tracking Technologies") for more details.

  • Analytics Data: We utilize third-party analytics services, including Google Analytics, to help us understand website traffic and usage patterns. See Section ("Analytics") for more details.

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How We Use Your Information

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We use the collected information for various purposes:

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• To operate and maintain our website.

• To respond to your inquiries, comments, and questions.

• To send you newsletters, updates, event information, or other communications you have requested

       or consented to receive.

• To process donations and send acknowledgments (if applicable).

• To manage event registrations (if applicable).

• To improve our website, content, and services by analyzing usage patterns.

• To monitor the security of our website and prevent fraudulent activity.

• To comply with legal obligations.

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Legal Basis for Processing Personal Information (GDPR)

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If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), our legal basis for collecting and using the personal information described above depends on the information concerned and the specific context:

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• Consent: Where you have given us consent (e.g., for newsletters).

• Contractual Necessity: To fulfill a service you requested (e.g., event registration).

• Legal Obligation: To comply with the law (e.g., financial records for donations).

• Legitimate Interests: Where processing is necessary for our legitimate interests (e.g., website analytics, security) and not overridden by your data protection interests or fundamental rights and freedoms.

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Cookies and Tracking Technologies

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We use cookies and similar technologies for purposes such as:

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• Necessary Cookies: Essential for the website to function properly (e.g., remembering login status, navigation).

• Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our website (e.g., Google Analytics) by collecting information anonymously.

• Functionality Cookies: Allow the website to remember choices you make (e.g., language preferences).

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You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, some parts of our website may not function properly. We may also use a cookie consent tool (banner) where legally required to obtain your consent before placing non-essential cookies.

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How We Share Your Information

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We value your privacy. We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to others. We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:

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• With Service Providers: We may share information with third-party vendors who perform services on our behalf, such as website hosting, email delivery, analytics providers, and payment processing. These providers are obligated to protect your information and use it only for the services they provide to us.

• For Legal Reasons: We may disclose your information if required by law, subpoena, or other legal process, or if we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, protect your safety or the safety of others, investigate fraud, or respond to a government request.

• With Your Consent: We may share your information for other purposes with your explicit consent.

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Third-Party Disclosure

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We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer your personally identifiable information to outside parties for their direct marketing purposes. We only share information as described in Section ("How We Share Your Information") primarily to facilitate the operation and improvement of our own services and communications with you.

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Analytics (e.g., Google Analytics)

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We use third-party Service Providers to monitor and analyze the use of our website.

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• Google Analytics: Google Analytics is a web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. Google uses the data collected to track and monitor the use of our Service. This data is shared with other Google services. Google may use the collected data to contextualize and personalize the ads of its own advertising network.

  • You can opt-out of having made your activity on the Service available to Google Analytics by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on. The add-on prevents the Google Analytics JavaScript (ga.js, analytics.js, and dc.js) from sharing information with Google Analytics about visits activity. For more information on the privacy practices of Google, please visit the Google Privacy & Terms web page: https://policies.google.com/privacy

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Social Sharing Features

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Our website may offer social sharing features or other integrated tools (such as "Share" buttons for Facebook, Pinterest, etc.), which let you share actions you take on our website with other media. The use of such features enables the sharing of information with your friends or the public, depending on the settings you establish with the entity that provides the social sharing feature. These features may collect your IP address, which page you are visiting on our site, and may set a cookie to enable the feature to function properly. Your interactions with these features are governed by the privacy policy of the company providing it. We encourage you to review their privacy policies.

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Third-Party Links

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Our website may contain links to other websites that are not operated or controlled by us ("Third-Party Links"). If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party's site. This Privacy Policy does not apply to these third-party websites. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services.

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Data Security

We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical security measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, alteration, or destruction. However, please be aware that no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

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Data Retention

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We will retain your personal information only for as long as is necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law (such as for tax, legal, or accounting purposes). For example, we retain newsletter subscription data until you unsubscribe.

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Your Data Protection Rights

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Depending on your location and applicable laws, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information, including:

• The right to access: You can request copies of your personal data.

• The right to rectification: You can request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate or complete information you believe is incomplete.

• The right to erasure: You can request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.

• The right to restrict processing: You can request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.

• The right to object to processing: You can object to our processing of your personal data based on legitimate interests.

• The right to data portability: You can request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organization, or directly to you, under certain conditions.

• The right to withdraw consent: If we rely on your consent to process your data, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

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To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided below. We will respond to your request in accordanceance with applicable laws. You may also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

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Children's Privacy

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Our website is not intended for children under the age of 13 (or 16 in the EEA). We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from children under this age. If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from children without verification of parental consent, we take steps to remove that information from our servers.

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International Data Transfers

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Your information, including personal data, may be transferred to — and maintained on — computers located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ from those in your jurisdiction. If you are located outside the United States and choose to provide information to us, please note that we transfer the data, including personal data, to the United States and process it there. We will take appropriate steps to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

 

Links to Other Websites

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Our website may contain links to other websites that are not operated by us. If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party's site. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services.

 

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last Updated" date at the top. You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Changes are effective when they are posted on this page.

 

Contact Us

 

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

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• By email: askgrowcloser@gmail.com

• Contact Form

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