Privacy Policy
Effective date: May 23, 2026
1. About Us
Buddha Jewel Monastery ("we", "us", or "the Monastery") is a non-profit Buddhist center located in Shoreline, Washington, USA. This website (the "System") is used to manage meditation course registrations, make-up class bookings, and consultation appointments.
2. Information We Collect
When you create an account or use the System, we may collect the following information:
- Account information: Chinese name, English name, email address, phone number, and encrypted password (your plaintext password is never stored).
- Google account information: If you choose to sign in with Google, we receive your name and email address from Google.
- Emergency contact information: Emergency contact name and phone number provided during course registration.
- Course and attendance records: Your registration status, make-up and consultation bookings, and attendance records.
- Communication records: Notes or questions you submit through the System.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your information only for the following purposes:
- Managing course registrations, waitlists, and attendance records.
- Sending registration confirmations, session reminders, and related notifications.
- Contacting your designated emergency contact in case of emergency.
- Enabling administrators and volunteers to manage courses and attendance.
- Improving the functionality and experience of the System.
We do not use your personal information for advertising, marketing, or any commercial purpose.
4. Data Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We share your data only in the following circumstances:
- Service providers: We use third-party services including Vercel (hosting), Hostinger (database), and Resend (email) that may process your data to provide their services.
- Legal requirements: We may disclose information if required by law or to protect the legal rights of the Monastery.
5. Data Security
We implement reasonable technical measures to protect your data, including encrypted password storage, HTTPS transmission, and restricted data access. However, no method of internet transmission is 100% secure.
6. Your Rights
You have the following rights regarding your personal information:
- Access or correct your personal information (via the My Profile page).
- Request deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us at the email below.
- Opt out of notification emails by contacting us.
If you are a resident of the EU, UK, or another jurisdiction with specific privacy laws, you may have additional rights including data access, portability, and objection to processing. Please contact us to exercise these rights.
7. Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active and as required by law or monastery record-keeping obligations. You may request deletion of your account at any time. Upon deletion, your personally identifiable information will be removed from the System, though anonymized attendance statistics may be retained.
8. Cookies and Tracking
The System uses only session cookies necessary to maintain your logged-in state. We do not use third-party advertising cookies or track your activity across other websites.
9. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes via email or a notice on the System. Please review this page periodically.
10. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:
Buddha Jewel Monastery
17418 8th Ave NE, Shoreline, WA 98155