As as 501 c3 organization we can accept tax deductible contributions. Our online cart is designed for those making contributions from the Support level to the Patron level. For contributions at the higher levels we use a separate Contribution Agreement document.

Even though we use PayPal's secure site for credit card processing, we manage a secure site here at Freedom Memorials. When you click the final Check Out button, you will see the lock in your browser's menu bar.

I would like to take a moment of your time to explain our contribution options. You can make your contribution using Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, or PayPal. You do not have to have a PayPal account. We decided to use PayPal as our processor for several reasons.

One, we receive a better overall processing rate. We negotiated a very favorable rate with our bank, First Citizens (our merchant account), and Authorize.net. On a $20 transaction the total processing cost would have been 4.65%. We lowered that to 4.40% using the PayPal IPN (Instant Payment Notification). Every penny counts!

Secondly, by using PayPal, they handle 100% of the processing, so you, as a contributor, do not have to worry about security. We do not have access to any of your credit card numbers. This is good for us since we do not have to warehouse and secure personal credit information. We want to build a memorial, not manage sensitive credit information.

There is one limitation that we believe is tolerable. You cannot make a contribution using a credit card of more than $2,000. This is a fraud protection regulation set up by PayPal when using their standard IPN. This is for your protection. If you would like to make a contribution over $2,000, please use the Mail In option and make your donation using your personal or business check.

Actually, we would prefer all donations by check because that would save the 4.40% processing fee. That extra percentage would be going to the memorial fund and not to the processor. But we felt, for your convenience, we needed to offer a credit card option. In that regard, we selected PayPal because they offered the best rate with no recurring fees.

The following is from the PayPal Website.

“PayPal is the safer, easier way to pay and get paid online. The service allows anyone to pay in any way they prefer, including through credit cards, bank accounts, buyer credit or account balances, without sharing financial information.

PayPal has quickly become a global leader in online payment solutions with more than 153 million accounts worldwide. Available in 190 markets and 17 currencies around the world, PayPal enables global ecommerce by making payments possible across different locations, currencies, and languages.

PayPal has received more than 20 awards for excellence from the internet industry and the business community -most recently the 2006 Webby Award for Best Financial Services Site and the 2006 Webby People's Voice Award for Best Financial Services Site.

Located in San Jose, California, PayPal was founded in 1998 and was acquired by eBay in 2002.”

Thank you for taking time to review this information.

Sincerely,

Jason Savage
President

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