Terms of Service

1. The Service

Arkon provides a software platform that helps pastors and church staff organize pastoral-care information, surface reminders, and stay present with the people in their congregations. Arkon organizes and surfaces information you provide; it does not replace your judgment or your direct relationships with the people in your care. You remain responsible for all pastoral decisions and for any outreach you choose to make.

2. Eligibility and accounts

You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a binding contract to use the Service. You are responsible for the accuracy of the information you provide, for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials, and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us promptly at help@joinarkon.com if you believe your account has been compromised.

If you use the Service on behalf of a church or organization, you represent that you are authorized to bind that organization to these Terms.

3. Subscriptions, billing, and payment

Plans. The Service is offered on a subscription basis. The features and price of your plan are those presented to you at the time you subscribe.

Billing. Subscription fees are billed in advance on a recurring basis (monthly or annually, depending on the plan you select) and are charged to your payment method on file. By subscribing, you authorize us to charge the applicable fees using our third-party payment processor.

Renewals. Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each billing period unless you cancel before the renewal date. You may cancel at any time; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period.

Refunds. Except where required by law, fees are non-refundable. If you cancel, you retain access through the end of the period you have paid for.

Price changes. We may change our fees. We will give you advance notice of any price change, and the new price will apply as of your next billing period.

4. Your data and congregant data

Ownership. As between you and Arkon, you and your church own the information you enter into or connect to the Service, including information about members of your congregation (“Your Data”). We do not claim ownership of Your Data.

Our role. We process Your Data on your behalf and under your direction, solely to provide and improve the Service. We do not sell Your Data, and we do not use congregant information for advertising or for any purpose other than operating the Service for you and your church. Our handling of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy.

Your responsibilities. You are responsible for ensuring you have the appropriate basis to enter congregant information into the Service and to use it for pastoral care, consistent with applicable law and the trust placed in you by the people in your care. You agree not to upload information you are not permitted to share.

Deletion. You may delete Your Data or close your account at any time. Upon account closure, we will delete or return Your Data in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable law.

5. Messaging

If you opt in, the Service may send SMS text messages to you, the account holder, related to your use of the Service. Messages are sent to you — not to your congregants. The terms governing SMS, including consent, message frequency, that message and data rates may apply, and how to opt out by replying STOP, are described in our Privacy Policy.

6. Third-party services

The Service integrates with third-party services (for example, church management systems such as Planning Center, message-delivery providers, and payment processors). Your use of those services is governed by their own terms and privacy policies. We are not responsible for third-party services, and their availability or changes may affect the Service. We may add, change, or remove integrations over time.

7. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Use the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of any applicable law;
• Upload information you have no right to share, or use the Service to harass, harm, or deceive any person;
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service, other accounts, or our systems;
• Interfere with or disrupt the integrity or performance of the Service;
• Reverse engineer, resell, or exploit the Service except as expressly permitted;
• Use the Service to send unsolicited messages or otherwise violate messaging or anti-spam laws.

We may suspend or terminate access for conduct that violates these Terms or that we reasonably believe may harm the Service, other users, or third parties.

8. Intellectual property

The Service, including its software, design, and content (excluding Your Data), is owned by Arkon LLC and protected by intellectual-property laws. We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the Service in accordance with these Terms. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works of the Service except as expressly permitted.

9. Disclaimers

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure, or that it will meet your requirements. The Service is a tool to support pastoral care; it is not professional, legal, medical, or counseling advice, and it does not replace your own judgment.

10. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Arkon LLC and its owner will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of data, profits, or goodwill, arising out of or related to your use of the Service. Our total liability for any claim arising out of or related to the Service will not exceed the amount you paid us for the Service in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim.

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so some of the above may not apply to you.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Arkon LLC and its owner from any claims, damages, liabilities, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of your use of the Service, Your Data, or your violation of these Terms or of any law or the rights of any third party.

12. Termination

You may stop using the Service and close your account at any time. We may suspend or terminate your access if you violate these Terms, if required by law, or if we discontinue the Service. Upon termination, your right to use the Service ends, and the provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive (including Sections 8–11) will survive.

13. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and, where appropriate, provide additional notice. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

14. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Maryland, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Maryland, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there.

15. Contact us

If you have questions about these Terms, contact us at: