Privacy Policy

✝️ 1. Our Commitment to Your Sacred Trust

Menbere Tsebaot Holy Trinity Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ("the Church", "we", "us", or "our"), located in Federal Way, Washington, is committed to safeguarding the privacy and dignity of our parishioners, families, Sunday School students, donors, and site visitors.

This Privacy Policy details how we collect, handle, safeguard, and disclose personal data gathered through our primary website (seattleholytrinity.com), the Family Portal, Sunday School registration systems, the Clergy Scheduler application, and online donation channels.

📋 2. Information We Collect

We collect information only as reasonably necessary to minister to our parish community and fulfill church administrative operations:

• Member & Family Registry: Head of household name, spouse, children, residential address, telephone numbers, email addresses, and Christian baptismal names (የክርስትና ስም).
• Sacramental Records: Vital dates, godparents, and lineage for Holy Baptism, Holy Matrimony, Confession appointments, and memorial prayers (ፍትሐት).
• Sunday School & Youth Ministry: Child names, ages, grade levels, parent emergency contact details, and any health or allergy notices essential for child safety during church sessions.
• Contributions & Stewardship: Tithe and offering records, membership dues, and donation history. Financial payment card numbers are processed directly by PCI-compliant merchant gateways (e.g. Stripe, Squarespace); no payment card details are stored on our church servers.
• Clergy Scheduler SaaS Accounts: Church administrator credentials, parish names, TV/tablet display tokens, and subscription statuses.

🛡️ 3. Absolute Confidentiality of Sacraments

👶 4. Protection of Children & Youth Privacy

We treat the safety and privacy of our children with paramount care:

• All Sunday School and Neqa Tbebat registrations must be completed by a parent or legal guardian. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children under 13 without parental consent.
• Photographs and videos of children participating in Sunday School or church festivals are published only in accordance with signed parental media consent waivers. Parents may opt-out at any time by contacting the Sunday School Director.

🌲 5. Washington State Privacy Rights

In alignment with Washington State consumer privacy principles, parishioners and registered families are granted full agency over their personal information:

• Right to Inspect & Export: You may review and download a digital copy of your family's records and donation history anytime via the Family Portal.
• Right to Rectify: You may update your residential address, phone numbers, and family roster at any time. Changes sync automatically with the Parish Council Office.
• Right to Erasure: You may request the deletion of non-canonical administrative accounts and contact records upon written notice.

🔒 6. Information Sharing & Data Security

We NEVER sell, rent, monetize, or trade your personal data. Your information is strictly utilized for parish communication, pastoral care, and church operations.

We employ rigorous modern security safeguards, including TLS/HTTPS encryption, Supabase Row-Level Security (RLS), and multi-factor authentication for parish council administrators.

📬 7. Contacting the Parish Office

For questions, privacy inquiries, or data updates, please reach out to our administration: