Garden Club of America Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

The GCA respects your privacy.  When you visit The Garden Club of America (GCA) website at www.gcamerica.org (the Website), we may collect information about you and your visit to operate and improve the GCA website, fulfill your requests for products and services, and respond to your inquiries.  Please be assured, the GCA will never rent or sell any information that identifies you personally (personal information). This Privacy Policy applies to the Website and to all websites owned and/or controlled by GCA.

Information We Collect

When you visit the Website, our servers automatically log certain technical information, such as the date and time of your visit, the name of the web site you are navigating from, the type of browser you are using, and your Internet protocol address.  We also collect information about how visitors use our website.  This information does not identify you personally unless you make an online donation to the GCA, make a purchase, or apply for a scholarship or other opportunity through the Website. 

When you make a donation or purchase something from the GCA, we collect certain information, such as your name, billing address, and email address, and other information about your donation or purchase.  For example, we may ask whether a donation is restricted or unrestricted, in memory or in honor of someone, etc.  If you are a member of a GCA club, this information may be combined with membership information we receive from your local garden club.  We also collect credit card or bank account numbers, which are processed by third-party payment vendors such as Authorize.net or PayPal, depending on the method of payment you choose. If you use Authorize.net or a similar service, their use of your information is based on their terms of service and policies, not ours, so we encourage you to review those policies carefully.

How We Use and Share that Information

We use information about you and your visit to operate and improve the GCA website, fulfill your requests for products and services, and respond to your inquiries.  We will not share your personal information with third parties unless you have given us permission or it is necessary to fulfill your requests for products or services, protect the rights, property, or safety of the GCA or others, or as required by law.

Cookies

In order to operate the Website, fulfill your requests, and recognize you when you return to the Website, our servers place a cookie on your computer's hard drive. Acookie is a small file containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer when you visit a website. Cookies may store user preferences and other information. You can reset your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, some Website features or services may not function properly without cookies.

Special Information about Photos and Postings

If you are a member of a GCA club, you may have the opportunity to post photographs, comments, and other content that may contain personal information in the Members Area of the Website.  By submitting comments, success stories, and photographs to on the Website, you give us permission to publish this information on the Website. Please remember that by posting information or photographs on the interactive portions of our Website that you are making this information available to other GCA club members. 

Emails and Newsletters

When you log on to the Members Area of the GCA Website, purchase a product, or make an online donation, you agree to receive emails from us, including notices about the status of your account, order confirmations, confirmation of email address or password changes, or customer service inquiries regarding activity on your account).  In addition, we may send you emails containing information that we think may be of interest to you, including information about new tools that are available on the site, You can choose not to receive promotional emails by contacting us at communications@gcamerica.org. Your opt-out will not apply to communications that are directly related to the fulfillment of a specific transaction you have requested.

Links to other Sites

This privacy policy does not apply to club websites, including those listed and/or for which a link appears on this site, or to any other websites for which we may provide links on our Website. The GCA does not control the privacy practices of any other site that may be linked from our Website. 

Changes to Policy

The Garden Club of America may update or modify this Privacy Policy from time to time.  If any changes are made, the GCA will reflect the date any such changes are made and posted by updating the ast updated date at the top of the page. 

Children under 13

This Website is intended for adults only.  We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 years old.    

Contacting the GCA

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, contact: communications@gcamerica.org