Privacy Notice

Last updated: 13 October 2026.

Rachel's Grotto respects your privacy. This is a simple, static website: it uses no cookies, no analytics and no tracking, and it collects no personal data about you while you browse. This notice explains, in plain language, what does apply, above all to the requests you send us for a memorial plaque.

In short

• No cookies, no analytics, no advertising and no tracking scripts.
• Nothing is loaded from other companies' servers until you choose to play a video.
• What you write to us, including your child's name, is used only to make the plaque and to reply to you.
• We never sell your data or share it for advertising.

Who is responsible

This website and Rachel's Grotto are run by Jemael-international e.V., Wildensteinblick 2, 78597 Irndorf, Germany (email contact@harpadei.com, telephone +49 7466 364; see the imprint). The association is the controller of the personal data described here under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Visiting this website

The site is hosted by Cloudflare. When you open a page, Cloudflare processes technical data such as your IP address, the page requested, the time and your browser type, in order to deliver the page and protect the site against attacks. This data is kept only briefly in Cloudflare's logs; we do not use it to identify you or to build a profile. The legal basis is our legitimate interest in running a secure website (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

Cloudflare, Inc. is based in the United States and certified under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, which the European Commission recognises as providing adequate protection. It processes this data on our behalf under its data processing terms.

The text, images and fonts all come from this website itself, so no other company learns that you are visiting.

No cookies

This website sets no cookies and stores nothing on your device. That is why you see no cookie banner: there is nothing to consent to.

Videos

The introduction video is hosted on YouTube. Until you press play, you only see a still image stored on this website, and YouTube is not contacted. When you press play, the video loads from youtube-nocookie.com, YouTube's privacy-enhanced mode, and Google Ireland Limited receives your IP address and technical data and may store information on your device. Google handles this data under its own privacy policy. Pressing play is your consent to this (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR and § 25 of the German TDDDG).

Plaque requests and other messages

The contact form does not send anything by itself. When you press its button, your own email program opens with your message addressed to grutaraquel@harpadei.com, and nothing leaves your device until you send it from there. You can also write to that address directly.

We use what you send us, such as your name, email address, country, message and the name you have given your child, only to make the memorial plaque, place it in Rachel's Grotto, send you a photo of it and reply to you. A plaque request can reveal sensitive matters, such as an abortion or your religious beliefs, so we handle it only with your explicit consent, which you give by sending it to us (Article 6(1)(a) and Article 9(2)(a) GDPR). You can withdraw that consent at any time by writing to us; this does not affect what was done before.

The plaque shows the name you have chosen for your child. It is placed in the grotto, a chapel that visitors can enter, and the grotto appears in photos and videos, including on this website.

Emails to grutaraquel@harpadei.com are stored for us by our email provider, STRATO, in Germany.

Donations

If you make a donation by bank transfer, your bank passes your name, account details and the amount to the association. We use them only to record the donation, as German tax and accounting law requires, and keep them for the periods that law sets, usually ten years (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR).

How long we keep your data

We keep your messages only as long as we need them to make your plaque and answer you, unless the law obliges us to keep them longer. The plaque itself stays in the grotto, as you asked. Cloudflare deletes its technical logs after a short time.

Who else receives your data

Only the service providers named above, working on our behalf: Cloudflare for the website and STRATO for email. Google receives data only if you play a video. We never sell your data or pass it on for advertising, and we disclose it to authorities only where the law requires.

Your rights

Under the GDPR you have the right to access the personal data we hold about you, to have it corrected or deleted, to restrict its processing, to receive it in a portable format, and to object to processing based on our legitimate interest. Where we rely on your consent, you can withdraw it at any time. To exercise any of these rights, write to grutaraquel@harpadei.com or to the address above. We will reply within one month, free of charge.

You can also lodge a complaint with a data protection authority, in particular in the country where you live. The authority responsible for us is the State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information of Baden-Württemberg (www.baden-wuerttemberg.datenschutz.de).

Changes to this notice

We may update this notice when the website changes. The date at the top shows the current version.