Terms of Use

Last updated: October 1, 2017

Please read the following Terms of Use and Disclaimers (the “Agreement”) carefully before accessing or using the Mission of our Lady of Mercy a/k/a Mercy Home for Boys & Girls (“Mercy Home”, “us”, “we”, or “our”) Website (the “Site” or “Website”) (including mobile sites or apps (collectively, the “Sites”)), because they govern your access and use of the Sites. By accessing or using the Sites, you acknowledge that you understand, accept and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions set forth below and the relevant Privacy Policy, hereby incorporated into this Agreement. If you do not wish to be bound by these terms and conditions, you must not access or use the Sites.

This Agreement is between Mercy Home and you, the Authorized User (“you” “your”), and applies to your use of the Sites and the Site’s services, and access to and use of all content on the Sites. In no event will any additional or inconsistent term in any document submitted by you modify this Agreement. This Agreement contains the terms, covenants, conditions and provisions upon which you may access and use the Sites.

1. Changes to Terms. Mercy Home reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to modify or replace this Agreement on a prospective basis at any time. Mercy Home will post the updated Agreement through the the Sites. The updated Agreement will be effective once it is posted on the Sites. Your continued use of the Sites following a change in the Terms represents your consent to the new Terms to the fullest extent permitted by law. Mercy Home encourages you to periodically review this Agreement. If you do not agree to the new terms, please stop using the Sites.

2. Acceptable Use. You agree that you will use the Sites only for lawful and authorized purposes.

3. Grant of Limited License. The content on the Sites includes, but is not limited to, text, graphics, images, photographs, illustrations, maps, trademarks, tradenames, service marks, logos, information obtained from Mercy Home’s licensors and other materials (“Content”). Title to the Content on the Sites remains with Mercy Home. Mercy Home invites you to view and use a single copy of the materials obtained from the Sites for your personal, non-commercial use. Except as expressly permitted on the Sites, you agree not to license, distribute, create derivative works from, transfer, sell or re-sell any information, Content, or services obtained from the Sites. No graphics, photographs or other visual elements obtained through the Sites may be used, copied, or distributed separate from the accompanying text without the prior express written consent of the original owner or Mercy Home. You are not permitted to use the materials on the Sites except as expressly set forth herein. You may not under any circumstances attempt to deface, shut down or otherwise damage the Sites. You may not, without Mercy Home’s written permission, “mirror” any Content contained in the Sites or any other server.

4. Third Party Services and Content. The Sites may be made available or accessed in connection with third party services and content (including advertising) that Mercy Home does not control. Our Sites may contain links to other websites provided by third parties. Please be aware that we do not control these third party content, including third party websites or any of the content contained therein. You acknowledge that different terms of use and privacy policies may apply to your use of such third party services and content. Mercy Home does not endorse such third party services and content, and in no event shall Mercy Home be responsible or liable for any products or services of such third party providers. Once you have left our Sites, we cannot be responsible for the privacy practices of such other websites. We encourage you to exercise caution and to read the privacy policy for the website you visit. The inclusion of hyperlinks to third party websites on our Sites in no way constitutes an endorsement by us of such websites’ content, actions or policies.

5. User Message Boards and Comments. Our Website may allow you to post comments, messages, or photos. The purpose of this is to share the accomplishments of our Mercy Home family and upcoming events that we believe are of interest to you. We welcome positive discussion, words of encouragement and constructive and respectful comments related to the topics on our page.

To protect the interests of our children and their families, we reserve the right to remove comments that we consider offensive, disruptive, defamatory or derogatory toward our children, their families, our coworkers or our mission.

It is out policy to remove content that includes profanity, sexual content or images, racial slurs or posts that could offend anyone on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, socioeconomic background, sexual orientation, age or disability. Off-topic content or advertisements may also be removed as well.

Additionally, by uploading photographs to this Website, you are warranting that you have the authority to authorize the public display of those photographs. You are representing and warranting that you own all rights in the photographs and that you have obtained all necessary consent from any third party whose images are depicted to reproduce said photographs, and if requested by Mercy Home, you will be able to promptly deliver proof of all required consents.

By uploading a photograph, video or other content to the Website, you are granting Mercy Home a license to display and reproduce the photo and caption in any format as Mercy Home sees fit. Mercy Home is under no obligation to display the photograph and may remove the photograph if it is deemed obscene, infringes on a third party copyright or trademark, or for any other reason determined at the sole discretion of Mercy Home.

6. Digital Millennium Copyright Act Notice. Pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (the “DMCA”), under 17 U.S.C. §§ 512(b)–(d), any copyright holder may send us a valid notification of claimed copyright infringement under the DMCA if they believe that their work has been copied and has been posted, stored, or transmitted to the Sites in a way that constitutes copyright infringement. Our designated agent to receive notifications of claimed infringement as described in DMCA subsection 512(c)(3) is:

Mission of Our Lady of Mercy, Inc. dba Mercy Home for Boys & Girls
Street Address: 1140 W. Jackson Blvd, Chicago, IL 60607
E-mail: info[at][mercyhome[dog]org

Under DMCA subsection 512(c)(3), a notification of claimed copyright infringement must be provided in writing to the above-listed designated agent and must include substantially the following:

1. A physical or electronic signature of the owner of or a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site.
2. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material.
3. Information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact the
4. complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted.
5. A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
6. A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is the owner of or is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Upon receipt of appropriate written notification from the complaining party, as described above, we will remove or disable access to the material that is claimed to be infringing. In addition, for notifications provided under DMCA subsection 512(c)(1)(C), we will take reasonable steps to forward the written notification to the allegedly infringer.

7. Hours of Accessibility. Mercy Home may make the Sites unavailable from time to time for computer or systems maintenance, upgrade or other matters without prior notice. The Sites are provided on an “as is,” “as available, and “with all faults” basis, and Mercy Home does not represent or warrant that the Sites or any of their functions will be uninterrupted or available at all times.

8. Disclaimer of Warranty. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY SET FORTH IN THESE TERMS, (I) the SITES and THEIR CONTENT ARE PROVIDED “AS IS,” “AS AVAILABLE” AND “WITH ALL FAULTS”, AND THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE SITES and CONTENT IS WITH YOU, AND (II) ALL WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SITES AND CONTENT, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF NON-INFRINGEMENT OR LACK OF Error OR VIRUSES, WORMS, TROJAN HORSES OR OTHER CODE THAT MANIFEST CONTAMINATING OR DESTRUCTIVE PROPERTIES ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED.

NO INFORMATION CONVEYED BY THE SITES and Content EITHER ORALLY OR IN WRITING SHALL CREATE SUCH A WARRANTY. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPLEMENTING SUFFICIENT PROCEDURES AND SAFETY MEASURES TO SATISFY YOUR REQUIREMENTS FOR PROTECTION OF AND ACCURACY OF DATA INPUT AND OUTPUT, AND FOR MAINTAINING A MEANS EXTERNAL TO THE WEBSITE FOR THE RECONSTRUCTION OF ANY LOST DATA. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL MERCY HOME BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND RELATING TO OR ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE OR CONTENT.

Except as expressly set forth in these Terms, Mercy Home and its affiliates make no guarantees and disclaim all warranties and representations about the Sites’ accuracy, relevance, timeliness or completeness, and do not warrant that the Sites and Content will meet your requirements in any respect, operate securely or be available at all times, or that the operation of the Sites will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that defects or errors in the Sites and Content can or will be corrected.

We do not represent or warrant that any version of the Sites and Content, or any portion thereof, will be compatible with any hardware or software versions or applications (including any future versions or updates of your phone, tablet, computer or its operating system) or provide the same functionality that is provided by the current version of the Sties and Content. The Sites and Content may not be compatible with your hardware or software versions or applications (including any specific versions of your phone, tablet, computer, or its specific operating system). Mercy Home does not undertake any obligation to provide the Website and Content to you in a way that is compatible with your hardware or software.

9. Limitation of Liability. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION WILL MERCY HOME, ITS DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, MANAGERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES OR ITS SUPPLIERS OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF THESE TERMS, YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE sites and Content, YOUR ACCESS TO OR YOUR INABILITY TO ACCESS THE SITES and Content, THE INACCURACY OR LOSS OF ANY DATA GENERATED OR MADE AVAILABLE BY THE SITES and Content OR YOUR RELIANCE ON ANY SUCH DATA, EVEN IF MERCY HOME HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages. Accordingly, some of the above limitations and disclaimers may not apply to you. To the extent that Mercy Home may not, as a matter of applicable law, disclaim any implied warranty or limit its liabilities, this section shall in any case be interpreted to limit our Liability to the greatest extent permitted by law.

You acknowledge and agree that Mercy Home has offered the Sites and Content and entered into this Agreement in reliance upon the warranty disclaimers and the limitations of liability set forth herein, that the warranty disclaimers and the limitations of liability set forth herein reflect a reasonable and fair allocation of risk between you and Mercy Home, and that the warranty disclaimers and the limitations of liability set forth herein form an essential basis of the bargain between you and Mercy Home. You acknowledge and agree that Mercy Home would not be able to provide the Sites and Content on an economically reasonable basis without these limitations.

10. Exclusive Remedy. IN THE EVENT OF ANY PROBLEM WITH THE SITES OR THE CONTENT, YOU AGREE THAT YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY IS TO CEASE USING THE SITES, THE SITES’ SERVICES, AND THE CONTENT. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL MERCY HOME, ITS AFFILIATES OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE IN ANY WAY FOR YOUR USE OF THE SITES, THE SITES’ SERVICES, OR THE CONTENT, OR THIRD PARTY USER GENERATED CONTENT AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH THE SITES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS, ANY INFRINGEMENT OF THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS OR OTHER RIGHTS OF THIRD PARTIES, OR FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE OF ANY KIND INCURRED AS A RESULT OF, OR RELATED TO, THE USE OF THE SITES, THE SERVICES, CONTENT, OR ANY THIRD PARTY USER GENERATED CONTENT AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH THE SITES.

11. Indemnification. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Mercy Home, its officers, directors, employees, agents, suppliers and third party partners from and against all losses, expenses, damages and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, from your use of the Sites or resulting from any violation by you of this Agreement, to the fullest extent allowed by law.

12. Privacy. Privacy is important to Mercy Home. Any personal information that you transmit to us, whether by electronic mail, postal mail, post/blog, or other means, for any reason is subject to our Privacy Policy. These Terms of Use include and incorporate the Privacy Policy, available at https://www.mercyhome.org/privacypolicy, which is integrated herein by this reference. Please read the Privacy Policy carefully for details relating to the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information.

13. Children. Children under 13 years of age are not allowed to access the Sites.

14. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the United States and the State of Illinois, without giving effect to conflict of law principles thereof.

15. Severability. If any provision of this Agreement is found to be invalid or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the extent permissible and, to the extent invalid or unenforceable, such provision shall be deemed modified to the most limited extent necessary to be valid and enforceable, in accordance with applicable law, while still as fully as possible carrying out the intent of the original provision, and the remainder of this Agreement will remain in full force and effect.

16. Waiver. Failure by Mercy Home to enforce any right or provision of this Agreement or otherwise prosecute any right with respect to a default hereunder will not constitute a waiver by Mercy Home of the right to enforce rights with respect to the same or any other breach.