FirstFruits Marketing of Washington, LLC seeks to build a holistic, sustainable community by empowering members to put their dreams into action and then serve those most in need within their community. To that end, FirstFruits Marketing of Washington, LLC is sponsoring the Opal® Apple Youth Make a Difference initiative in 2021, and is looking to the public to help find great causes to receive charitable grants and will distribute grants totaling up to $75,000.
TERMS & CONDITIONS
These rules (the “Terms & Conditions”) govern the 2021 Opal® Apple Youth Make a Difference grant making program (the “Initiative”), as sponsored by FirstFruits Marketing of Washington, LLC (the “Sponsor”), and set forth the terms and conditions between the Sponsor and each applicant charity and voter participating in the Initiative, including visitors of the Opal® Apple Facebook page. Participation in this Initiative constitutes acceptance of these Terms & Conditions.
How to Participate
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO PARTICIPATE. A PURCHASE OR PAYMENT WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR OTHERWISE RESTRICTED BY LAW.
1. The Initiative. The Initiative is conducted in five (5) phases.
PHASE I: Beginning on January 25, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (“EST”) the Sponsor will begin accepting completed applications from charities. Applications can be found atwww.opalapples.com/cause or by following the link located at www.facebook.com/opalbrand. Applications must be received by the Sponsor prior to March 31, 2021 at 8:00 p.m. EST, to be considered for the Initiative. The information required in the application indicating a charity’s status as a “qualifying charity” (as defined in Section 5 below) must be submitted at the time of the application submission.
PHASE II: Beginning on or about April 25, 2021, the Sponsor and its selected external partners will use objective criteria to narrow the received applications for the charities determined to be “qualifying charities” (as defined in Section 5 below) to the top forty (40) charities. Selection and judging for the qualifying charities under this PHASE II is based on the following criteria:
1. How the qualifying charity’s initiative addresses one or more of: (a) food security, (b) nutrition, (c) agriculture, and (d) food politics and education; and
2. Youth leadership and involvement in the qualifying charity’s initiative.
PHASE III: Prior to May 8, 2021 at 12:00 a.m. EST, the Sponsor judges will review and reduce the PHASE II qualifying charities to fifteen (15) semi-finalists (the “Semi-Finalist Charities”) to be featured in the final voting PHASE IV. Selection of the Semi-Finalist Charities will be based on the following criteria:
1. How well the qualifying charity’s initiative inspires others to act;
2. How well the qualifying charity’s initiative encourages participants to pay it forward, serve and inspire others;
3. The lasting impact the qualifying charity’s initiative has on the community, and does that initiative have the ability to sustain operations beyond the receipt of the Initiative grant;
4. How well does the qualifying charity’s initiative empower those that receive that initiative’s benefits; and
5. The number of people that the qualifying charity’s initiative positively impacts.
The Sponsor will attempt to contact each of the Semi-Finalist Charities to inform them of their nomination as a semi-finalist. The names of the Semi-Finalist Charities will then be posted on the Opal® Apple website, at www.opalapples.com/cause, and www.facebook.com/opalbrand pursuant to PHASE IV below.
PHASE IV: The Sponsor asks the public to participate in the Initiative to help select up to Ten (10) finalists out of the thirteen (13) Semi-Finalists by voting for the top charities at www.opalapples.com/cause (the “Finalist Charities”). The specific voting requirements are set forth in Section 2 below. The full results of the public voting will be a factor in the Sponsor’s final determination of the Finalist Charities to receive the grants, as further described in PHASE V below. Public voting will begin on May 8, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (“EST”) and end on May 31, 2021 at 11:59 a.m. EST (the “Voting Phase”). Voters are encouraged to vote one (1) time during this Voting Phase, pursuant to the restrictions and limitations set forth in Section 2 hereunder.
PHASE V: Beginning on June 1, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. EST, the Sponsor judges will make a final determination of which of the Finalist Charities shall receive grants, and for what amounts. Vote totals shall constitute only one of the factors the Sponsor’s judges shall consider in its final determination. The full criteria for determining which of the Finalist Charities are to receive grants, and for what amounts, is as follows:
1. Fulfillment of Phase III criteria.
2. Number of public votes.
3. Final determination by Sponsor.
1. The Sponsor shall contact the Finalist Charities on June 15, 2021 with the results. The results will also be posted on at www.opalapples.com/cause and on the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/opalbrand after all Finalist Charities have accepted. The Finalist Charities shall receive their corresponding grant distributions on or about July 31, 2021.
2. How to Publicly Vote during the Voting Phase. Participants can vote by going to the Opal Brand website at www.opalapples.com/cause, or clicking the link to the website from the www.facebook.com/opalbrand using any web-enabled mobile device, and voting for one (1) of the thirteen (13) Semi-Finalist Charities during the Voting Phase. Participants may vote for one (1) Semi-Finalist Charity one (1) time, not using more than one (1) browser. If it is determined that any voter has voted more than one (1) time in total, such additional votes will be disqualified. The Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify votes and/or the Semi-Finalist Charity for activities deemed not in the spirit of this Initiative.
Use of an automated process or similar device to submit a vote is strictly prohibited. If a Semi-Finalist Charity receives irregular votes, including but not limited to, votes generated by a robotic, programmed, script, macro, other automated means or other source, the Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify the charity from the Initiative in its sole discretion. If the Voting Phase fails to operate properly or appears to be tampered with or tainted with errors, fraud or unfair practices, the Sponsor in its sole discretion reserves the right to use another means to determine the voting results. The Semi-Finalist Charities may not pay people or provide any other type of consideration in exchange for votes, and any charity that violates the ban on paying or providing consideration in exchange for votes may be disqualified.
3. Voter Eligibility. Any member of the public who abides by these Terms & Conditions may vote in the Voting Phase of this Initiative. You do not need to have a Facebook account to vote in this Initiative. The Sponsor and any other party associated with the development, execution, or administration of this Initiative, and their respective employees, officers, directors, and agents may not vote in this Initiative. Individuals under the age of thirteen (13) are not eligible to vote. Void where prohibited. The Sponsor is not responsible for, nor is it required to count, in the Sponsor’s sole and absolute discretion, late, lost, misdirected, unlawful or illicit votes, votes cast for Semi-Finalist Charities later determined to be ineligible, votes achieved through automated means, by using any other person's Facebook account, as well as those that are achieved through other fraudulent means, unsportsmanlike conduct or in a manner otherwise inconsistent with these Terms & Conditions. The Sponsor reserves the right to eliminate a voter's involvement and all of the voter's votes cast through the Initiative if the Sponsor, in its sole discretion, determines that the voter is not abiding by these Terms & Conditions or is otherwise acting in an unsportsmanlike or inappropriate manner.
4. Voting Results of the Voting Phase. At the end of the Voting Phase, the Sponsor will tabulate the voting results. At the sole discretion of the Sponsor, the results may be reviewed by an independent third party. The Semi-Finalist Charities’ vote rankings are subject to verification by the Sponsor and the Sponsor’s decisions are final and binding in all matters related to the Initiative.
5. Charity Eligibility. In order to be eligible to participate in the Initiative, applicant charities must be “qualifying charity” defined as a nonprofit operating in one of the fifty (50) United States or the District of Columbia, and is either: (i) a public charity that must submit proof of 501(c)(3) status; or (ii) an “educational organization” or “school” as described in IRC § 170(b)(1)(A)(ii) and Reg. 1.170A-9(b)(1), that must submit proof of exclusion from private foundation status under IRC § 509(a)(1), by presenting a government affirmation letter or other similar documentation evidencing such status; and the applicant charity must meet any additional requirements set forth in the Initiative application. An applicant charity is only eligible if it has an annual operating budget of less than two million dollars ($2,000,000) based on most recent IRS filings or otherwise substantiated through audited financial statements. The Sponsor does not provide grants to support individuals. For purposes of this Initiative, an “educational organization” shall mean an organization that must: (i) present formal instruction as its primary function; (ii) normally maintain a regular faculty and curriculum; and (iii) normally have a regularly enrolled body of pupils or students in attendance at the place where its educational activities are regularly carried on. Any one or more of the applicant charities may be deemed ineligible or be disqualified from any phase of the Initiative if, in the Sponsor's sole and absolute discretion, an applicant charity, its management or affiliated organizations, among other things:
· is, or has been, under any investigation for fraud, misconduct (financial or otherwise) or other criminal activity;
· promotes or suggests, directly or indirectly, the use of firearms/weapons, any illegal drugs, prostitution or pornography, violence, or the underage use of alcohol;
· suggests or encourages, directly or indirectly, the taking up of arms against any person, government or entity or otherwise challenges or seeks to overthrow any government;
· disparages or denigrates any race, age, gender, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, political orientation, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, marital status, veteran status or mental or physical disability or condition or otherwise discriminates (in an exclusionary way) against any of those groups based solely on being classified as fitting into those groups;
· disparages, denigrates (in writing or otherwise), or acts by means of adversarial or confrontational tactics to impact a product, service, person, industry, or organization including, but not limited to, the Sponsor or the participants or voters in the Initiative;
· takes or encourages any actions that harm the integrity of the Initiative, or otherwise conducts itself in an unsportsmanlike or inappropriate manner;
· entices voters by offering any type of consideration, gift, or award, including merchandise, cash, online currency, or anything deemed to have value in exchange for votes; or
· violates these Terms & Conditions, or any other requirement of this Initiative, including the application form.
Any applicant charity determined to be ineligible at any time will be disqualified. The Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to determine eligibility and disqualify any applicant charity at any time for violation of any of these Terms & Conditions.
6. Posting. Voters are prohibited from posting any comments on the Opal® Apple website or Facebook page that promotes, suggests or encourages:
· gambling, including without limitation, any content related to online casinos, sports books, bingo or poker;
· the use of firearms/weapons/ammunition, any illegal drugs, prostitution, pornography, nudity, profanity or other adult content, violence, or the use of alcohol or tobacco products;
· the taking up of arms against any person, government or entity or otherwise challenges or seeks to overthrow any government;
· or otherwise contains: obscene, defamatory, libelous, slanderous and/or unlawful content; content that infringes upon, or otherwise violates, the rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or other personal or proprietary rights; content that is deceptive or fraudulent; hate speech, or other discriminatory, disparaging or denigrating content, whether directed at an individual or a group, and whether based upon race, age, gender, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, political orientation, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, marital status, veteran status or mental or physical disability or condition; content that disparages, denigrates, or uses adversarial or confrontational tactics to impact a product, service, person, industry, or organization including, but not limited to, the Sponsor or voters in the Initiative; content inconsistent with these Terms & Conditions; or unsportsmanlike conduct.
The Sponsor reserves the right to delete any comments in its sole and absolute discretion, including but not limited to any postings that violate these restrictions.
7. Facebook Disclaimer. This Initiative is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. You are providing your information to the Sponsor and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for this Initiative.
8. General Terms & Conditions. The following terms and conditions apply to any applicant of the Initiative, whether an individual or the organization on behalf of which the applicant submits the application form (“you”).
a. You agree that the decisions of the Sponsor and the selection panel described above with respect to any and all aspects of this project shall be final.
b. You agree that your participation is voluntary, and understand that the Sponsor may, in its sole discretion, terminate your involvement should you or the organization fail to adhere to these Terms & Conditions.
c.You confirm your authority to serve as an official representative of the organization detailed in the Initiative application.
d.You agree to release and hold harmless the Sponsor, its parents, affiliates and subsidiaries, agency partners and the selection panel, from any and all liability arising from participation, and/or acceptance, possession or use/misuse of grant funding.
e. You grant to the Sponsor the right to use all submitted content (including organization name, project details, organization logo, and support documentation and images) for marketing and other purposes, in any media whatsoever, without compensation (monetary or otherwise). To the extent that you provide any support materials, you grant the Sponsor the right to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, create derivative works from, distribute, and display the support material for any purpose, including advertising, publication, and promotion.
f. You represent that to the extent any submitted material contains names, pictures, images or voices of persons other than yourself, or third party elements not owned by you, that you have obtained express written consent to use this material in your application and that the usage rights outlined above apply to these materials.
g. You understand that the Sponsor is not responsible for lost, stolen, garbled, late, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible, or misdirected submissions, which are void; telephone, computer, server, or other technical failure or error; or any disruptions to the voting process or communication, technical, or otherwise.
9. Limitation of Liability. The Sponsor, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to suspend, cancel or modify the Initiative without notice or liability if the integrity of the Initiative is compromised in any manner, as determined by the Sponsor, or if the Initiative is not capable of being conducted as intended, including, but not limited to, as a result of unforeseeable market conditions or other situations not in the control of the Sponsor. The Sponsor assumes no responsibility for any loss or damage to applicant charities, voters, or grant recipients, or to any other person, resulting from participation in the Initiative.
10. Release and Indemnity. Applicants, voters, and grant recipients release the Sponsor, and its parent, affiliate, subsidiaries, officers, directors, agents, employees, Facebook, Inc., and all others associated with the development and execution of the initiative, from any and all liability with respect to, or in any way arising from, the Initiative, including, but not limited to, any suspension, modification, or cancellation of the Initiative, submissions received or posted, and/or acceptance or use of the grant funding, including liability for personal injury, death, damages or loss. Applicants agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Sponsor, its agent and their respective parents, and its and their subsidiaries, affiliates, successors, licensees, and assigns, and each of their directors, officers, agents, and employees from and against any and all claims, losses, costs, damages, liabilities and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) which arise out of any breach of these Terms & Conditions.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES AND UNDER NO LEGAL THEORY, TORT, CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, SHALL THE SPONSOR BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF IT HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES OR CLAIMS.
11. Governing Law. Except where prohibited, the applicant charities and voters agree that: (a) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with the Initiative shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the appropriate court located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; and (b) all issues and questions concerning these Terms & Conditions and the Initiative shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Minnesota, USA, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules.
12. Initiative Entities. FirstFruits Marketing of Washington, LLC, 1111 Fishhook Park Road, Prescott, WA 99348 (the “Sponsor”).
13. Questions / Comments. Please visit www.firstfruits.com for contact information.