Privacy Policy

Effective Date: July 15, 2026

Always & Furever Midwest Animal Sanctuary, Inc. (ā€œAlways & Furever,ā€ ā€œA&F,ā€ ā€œwe,ā€ ā€œour,ā€ or ā€œusā€) respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, protect, retain, and disclose information when you visit our website, submit a form, make a donation, apply to volunteer, foster or adopt, register for an event, request assistance, or communicate with us by telephone, email, SMS text message, MMS message, social media, or another communication method.

Our mission is rooted in compassion, trust, and respect. We collect and use information only as reasonably necessary to support our animal-rescue work, provide services, process donations, coordinate care, communicate with members of our community, and operate our organization.

Information We May Collect

We may collect information that you voluntarily provide to us, including:

  • Name
  • Email address
  • Mobile or other telephone number
  • Mailing address
  • Donation and transaction information
  • Volunteer, foster, adoption, employment, event-registration, or program-participation information
  • Animal intake, ownership, behavioral, veterinary, medical, or care-related information that you choose to provide
  • Emergency contact information
  • Photos, videos, files, records, or documents submitted to assist with animal rescue, placement, foster care, adoption, veterinary care, fundraising, or organizational operations
  • Communications sent to us by email, telephone, SMS, MMS, website form, social media, or another communication channel
  • Communication preferences, including SMS or email opt-in and opt-out records

When you use our website, we may also collect certain technical information automatically, including your IP address, browser type, device type, referring website, pages viewed, approximate location based on IP address, and interactions with our website.

How We Use Information

We may use the information we collect to:

  • Respond to inquiries, requests, applications, or submissions
  • Coordinate animal rescue, intake, transport, foster care, adoption, veterinary care, rehabilitation, and follow-up support
  • Communicate with volunteers, fosters, adopters, donors, applicants, event participants, rescue partners, and community members
  • Send appointment reminders, scheduling information, care instructions, rescue updates, transport information, and operational notifications
  • Process donations, purchases, registrations, or other transactions
  • Issue donation acknowledgments and tax receipts
  • Provide updates about animals, programs, events, fundraising needs, volunteer opportunities, and rescue activities
  • Maintain accurate organizational, donor, animal-care, financial, and communication records
  • Administer our website, forms, programs, events, and communications
  • Improve our website, services, communications, and community programs
  • Detect fraud, misuse, security incidents, or other prohibited activity
  • Comply with legal, financial, regulatory, contractual, and operational requirements

SMS and MMS Messaging

Always & Furever may offer SMS and MMS messaging for individuals who expressly consent to receive text messages from us.

Depending on the program or interaction, messages may relate to:

  • Animal rescue or intake coordination
  • Foster or adoption communication
  • Volunteer scheduling and coordination
  • Veterinary appointments or animal-care instructions
  • Transport coordination
  • Event information
  • Donation or fundraising communications
  • Emergency or time-sensitive operational updates
  • Photos, videos, forms, links, or resources associated with these activities

Providing a mobile phone number does not automatically enroll you in every Always & Furever text-messaging program. Where SMS consent is requested, consent must be provided through the applicable opt-in method, such as an unchecked checkbox, written request, keyword, online form, or other affirmative action.

Consent to receive SMS or MMS messages is not a condition of making a donation, purchasing goods or services, applying to adopt or foster, volunteering, receiving assistance, or otherwise interacting with Always & Furever.

Message frequency varies depending on your interactions with us and the messaging program in which you participate. Message and data rates may apply.

Reply STOP to any text message to opt out. After opting out, you may receive one final message confirming that your opt-out request has been processed. Reply HELP for assistance or contact Always & Furever using the information listed in the ā€œContact Usā€ section below. Wireless carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

Mobile Information and Messaging Consent

Always & Furever does not share, sell, rent, trade, transfer, or otherwise provide mobile phone numbers, SMS or MMS opt-in data, or messaging consent information to third parties or affiliates for their marketing or promotional purposes.

Mobile information and messaging consent may be disclosed only:

  • To service providers that help us deliver or administer our messaging services
  • When necessary to provide a service or fulfill a request initiated by the individual
  • When required by law, legal process, court order, or governmental authority
  • To protect the rights, safety, security, or property of Always & Furever, the public, animals in our care, or other individuals

Service providers that process mobile information on our behalf are permitted to use it only as necessary to provide services to Always & Furever and may not use it for their own independent marketing or promotional purposes.

The categories of permitted information sharing described elsewhere in this Privacy Policy do not include sharing SMS or MMS opt-in data or messaging consent with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.

Opting Out of SMS or MMS Messages

You may withdraw your consent to receive SMS or MMS messages at any time by replying STOP to a message from us. You may also contact us directly and request removal from SMS or MMS communications. Please allow a reasonable amount of time for manually submitted requests to be processed.

Opting out of SMS or MMS messages does not necessarily opt you out of email, telephone, postal mail, or other communications. You may manage those communications separately.

How We Disclose Information

We do not sell personal information.

We may disclose personal information to trusted vendors, contractors, professional advisers, and service providers that assist us with organizational functions, including:

  • Donation and payment processing
  • Website hosting and administration
  • Online forms and application processing
  • Email, telephone, SMS, and communication services
  • Volunteer, foster, adoption, shelter, and animal-care management
  • Veterinary care, rescue coordination, transport, and animal placement
  • Event registration and fundraising
  • Data storage, analytics, information technology, and cybersecurity
  • Accounting, auditing, insurance, legal, compliance, and operational support

These parties may use personal information only as necessary to provide services to Always & Furever or as otherwise permitted or required by law.

We may also disclose information:

  • At your request or with your authorization
  • To coordinate animal care, rescue, placement, transportation, veterinary treatment, foster care, or adoption
  • To comply with applicable laws, regulations, subpoenas, court orders, or legal processes
  • To investigate or prevent fraud, abuse, security threats, or unlawful conduct
  • To protect the rights, property, safety, or welfare of Always & Furever, animals, members of the public, staff, volunteers, fosters, adopters, donors, or other individuals
  • In connection with a merger, restructuring, transfer of assets, or similar organizational transaction, subject to appropriate privacy protections

Nothing in this section permits mobile phone numbers, messaging opt-in data, or messaging consent to be shared with third parties or affiliates for their marketing or promotional purposes.

Donor Information

We use donor information to:

  • Process donations
  • Provide confirmations, acknowledgments, and tax receipts
  • Maintain financial and donation records
  • Thank donors
  • Communicate about the impact of donations
  • Provide information about programs, campaigns, events, or future opportunities to support our mission

We do not sell donor information. We do not disclose donor information to outside parties for their independent marketing purposes. Donors may request to remain anonymous in public donor-recognition materials where reasonably possible.

Photos, Videos, and Submitted Materials

When you submit photos, videos, files, medical records, animal-care information, foster updates, adoption materials, or intake records, we may use those materials to support animal rescue and intake, veterinary review and treatment coordination, foster or adoption placement, animal identification, lost-and-found assistance, transport and rescue-partner coordination, program administration, fundraising, advocacy, community education, and mission-related storytelling.

We may use animal photographs, animal stories, rescue updates, and related materials for adoption promotion, fundraising, advocacy, education, social media, newsletters, and other mission-related communications unless you notify us that particular material should not be used in that manner.

We will make reasonable efforts not to publicly disclose sensitive personal information contained in submitted records unless authorized, necessary, or legally required.

Cookies, Analytics, and Similar Technologies

Our website may use cookies, pixels, analytics tools, embedded content, or similar technologies to:

  • Operate website features
  • Remember preferences
  • Understand website traffic and visitor interactions
  • Improve website performance and user experience
  • Measure outreach, advertising, fundraising, or campaign effectiveness
  • Detect security threats or misuse

Some technologies may be provided by third-party services. Those providers may process information according to their own privacy policies. You may control or disable certain cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect the operation of some website features.

Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website may contain links to third-party websites or services, including donation processors, online stores, event platforms, volunteer systems, adoption services, social media platforms, forms, and partner organizations.

Always & Furever does not control and is not responsible for the privacy, security, content, or practices of third-party websites or services. You should review the privacy policy of each third-party service before providing information.

Data Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, loss, alteration, misuse, or disclosure.

However, no website, database, telephone system, email, SMS message, MMS message, or internet transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure. You should use care when transmitting sensitive information electronically.

Data Retention

We may retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to:

  • Provide services
  • Maintain animal-care, adoption, foster, volunteer, donor, employment, and financial records
  • Fulfill the purpose for which the information was collected
  • Meet legal, tax, accounting, insurance, regulatory, contractual, or reporting requirements
  • Resolve disputes
  • Protect the organization, animals, and members of our community
  • Enforce agreements and policies

Retention periods may differ depending on the nature of the information and applicable legal or operational requirements.

Childrenā€™s Privacy

Our website and services are not directed toward children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without appropriate permission from a parent or legal guardian. If you believe a child under 13 has submitted personal information without appropriate permission, please contact us so we can review and, where appropriate, delete the information.

Your Privacy Choices

You may contact us to:

  • Update or correct your contact information
  • Change your communication preferences
  • Withdraw consent to receive SMS or MMS messages
  • Unsubscribe from email communications
  • Ask how your information is used
  • Request access to, correction of, or deletion of certain information where legally and operationally appropriate

We may need to retain certain information when required by law or when reasonably necessary for animal-care, financial, fraud-prevention, safety, contractual, or organizational purposes.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect changes in our operations, legal obligations, technologies, or communication practices. Any revised policy will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Your continued use of our website or services after a revised policy becomes effective is subject to the revised policy.

Contact Us

For questions about this Privacy Policy, our information practices, or your communication preferences, contact:

Always & Furever Midwest Animal Sanctuary, Inc.
Website: https://www.alwaysandfurever.org/
Email: info@alwaysandfurever.org
Telephone: 1-800-247-9527