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CarePortal Card Training, FAQs & Best Practices

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CarePortal Training
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Overview

This article takes a deeper look at the specific way the CarePortal Card can and cannot be used, and how Churches can best utilize the card to increase their ability to respond to local requests. It also shows how the CarePortal Card makes it easy for the community to equip the local church to make more connections to families as they meet more needs. 

Intended Audience

Church Leaders and Network Leaders

Included in This Article: 

The Purpose of the CarePortal Card

The CarePortal Card was designed to simplify the financial transaction process for community members to help meet requests in partnership with local churches, as well as other churches who can work in tandem to meet requests. With more organizations, businesses, and individuals able to get involved, churches will be equipped to serve more kids and families, bringing glory to Jesus Christ as His ambassadors!

Churches of all sizes and types are able to request a CarePortal Card at no cost. This is just one way CarePortal is able to work toward our assignment of empowering the local church to be the champion for kids and families in crisis.

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How it Works

For Connecting Churches:

Approved Connecting Churches are alerted when someone not affiliated with a church that is local to the family in need commits to help meet some or all of the family's need. If the Connecting Church is equipped with a CarePortal Card, these responders will have the additional response option to "Fund Items" with a financial gift directly through the CarePortal platform. Without a CarePortal Card available, responders can only offer to "Provide Items" to local Connecting Churches, which means these requests would not allow responders to offer funding directly through the CarePortal platform. When a responder "provides", this requires the church to coordinate a way of getting the items from the responder to the family. 

Once someone commits to fund the items included on a request, one card-holding church will be able to commit to the responder's resources, triggering a transfer of 100 percent of the donated funds to their CarePortal Card so the items or services can be provided by that local church.

Churches that are not Connecting Churches and do not have an active CarePortal Card can still choose to "Engage the Community" on a specific request, but community responders would not have the option to directly fund any of the items included on the request. 

With a CarePortal Fund:

Churches that are not necessarily Connecting Churches but have enabled and raised money into their CarePortal Fund can transfer that money from their CarePortal Fund to their CarePortal Card for specific open CarePortal Requests, allowing them to equip their own teams to directly serve local families.

See the FAQ section below for specific options and restrictions on how the CarePortal Card can be used.

CarePortal Card Training Video

(to use or embed this video in your own resources, feel free to use this link)

CarePortal Card FAQs

  1. How can my church request a CarePortal Card?

    The Primary Point Person can find the Request CarePortal Card button in their Church Settings tab in the top right-hand corner or under the CarePortal Card Requests header.


  2. Which church leader roles are eligible to receive a CarePortal Card?

    All Church Leader roles (Point Person, Pastor, Connecting Church Leader, Church Needs Leader) as well as Team Leaders for the church's default team are eligible to receive a CarePortal Card.

  3. Who can offer funding for CarePortal requests?

    For Connecting Churches: There are two types of responders that are given the opportunity to donate and help meet needs through Connecting Churches. 
     
    1. Community Champions & Responders - Organizations or individuals who are not approved response team members for an active CarePortal church
    2. Response Team Members of Connecting Churches with a CarePortal Card - Funding donated by these responders will be offered to their own church for 24 hours before the CarePortal platform alerts other Connecting Churches and allows them to commit to the request and claim the funds.

    For Non-Connecting Churches with a CarePortal Fund Enabled and active CarePortal Card: When funding a request, Church Leaders and Team Leaders of the default team can select their church's CarePortal Fund as the "Contribution Source" to fund a request. For local requests, a preselected checkbox (shown below) will appear, giving them the option to have this money transferred to their CarePortal Card.
      Note: In these cases, only church leaders can Fund specific local requests they choose. This is not available to their response team members, who can only give into the church's CarePortal Fund without selecting specific items or requests. To allow team members to Fund specific requests, the church must be a Connecting Church.

    For more details, please see the article above on using a CarePortal Fund.

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  4. When will I be alerted about available funding? (Connecting Churches only)

    Based on your church's Connecting Church Radius setting, each Connecting Church can determine how far away you and your teams are willing to serve a family when the resources are available. You will only be alerted about resources available for requests inside this radius.

    The CarePortal platform will identify and alert the "Recommended Connecting Church" first (the closest Connecting Church to the family or the church where the responder is an approved response team member). If the Recommended Connecting Church does not Commit & Claim the available resources within 24 hours, the other Connecting Churches with the request inside their radius are alerted and also given the chance to Commit & Claim.

  5. How does donated money get onto my CarePortal Card?

    For Connecting Churches: When a Community Responder or Response Team member at your church decides to fund a requested item or service inside your Connecting Church radius, the money is not donated directly to your CarePortal Card. You will be alerted with the opportunity to Engage the Community Responder and "Take the Lead" for that request and commit and claim at least one of the items funded on that particular CarePortal request. Once you've committed and claimed, the donated funds for that request will become available for use on your CarePortal Card. You will receive a notification when the funds are made available. As the Lead Church, any additional funding given by the community will automatically be transferred to your CarePortal Card and you will receive an additional email notifying you of these funds.

    For Non-Connecting Churches: The only way for a church that is not a Connecting Church to use a CarePortal Card is to enable a CarePortal Fund in their church settings, and guide partners or members to make donations into it. Money from this CarePortal Fund can then be added to your CarePortal Card in the process of "funding" an open, local CarePortal request. When you select your CarePortal Fund as the "Contribution Source", you'll see a checkbox appear that confirms you'd like to transfer the value of the items you've selected onto your CarePortal Card. (You can deselect this checkbox if you'd like to offer this money to another, potentially-closer church to the family.) Once you submit your response, the money will be transferred onto your Card within a few minutes. You will receive an email confirmation when the transfer is complete and the Card is ready to use.

  6. Is there a fee to request or use a CarePortal Card?

    CarePortal offers the CarePortal Card at no cost to churches that are active in the CarePortal platform, including covering transaction fees from the community donor to the PEX card and all donor tax responsibilities.

  7. Which financial institution offers the CarePortal Card?

    The CarePortal Card is a prepaid business debit card offered through PEX.

  8. How can I check my CarePortal Card balance?

    Cardholders as well as any Church Leader at your church are able to see the current balance in two places:

      1.  On the Dashboard tab
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      2.  On the Transactions tab under Request Management, click the View Totals button
    Screenshot 2024-01-24 at 1.54.46 PM.png

    Your CarePortal Card balance is driven by two potential factors:
    A. As a Connecting Church: Your Card balance is driven by how much funding you've Committed & Claimed that was first offered by individual responders for specific needs on open, local requests.
    B. If your church has enabled a CarePortal Fund: Your card balance is driven by what a church leader has transferred from your CarePortal Fund to your Card relating to a specific, local, open request. 

  9. What types of transactions are restricted?

    The CarePortal Card will be declined when the transaction is coded by the vendor as a cash transfer. This will be the case for the following types of transactions:
      - ATM cash withdrawals
      - Peer-to-peer cash transfers (CashApp, Venmo, etc.)

    This may be the case for these types of transactions:
      - Paying bills (utility bills, car payments, etc.)
      - Money orders (Walmart locations tend to work)
      - Gift cards

    Also, the card will be declined when the vendor puts an additional hold on the card that exceeds the card's current limit/balance.
      mceclip3.png Quick Tip: If your church needs to use funds from your CarePortal Card to perform one of these transactions, you can make a donation from your CarePortal card to your church and perform the transaction through your church's banking provider. Click here for more suggestions and tips.
    		  
           

  10. How should I enter the "Name on Card" for online transactions?

    First name: Church name (exactly as it appears on the CarePortal Card, no numbers)
    Last name: 5-digit church ID number

  11. Is there a spend limit?

    The spend limit is equivalent to the card balance. You cannot exceed the card balance with any transactions used on the CarePortal Card. 

  12. Is there a billing zip code?

    The billing zip code is determined when you set up the initial card request under the billing address section. Usually, this will be the zip code for where the church gathers together.

  13. Is there a PIN?

    Yes, when you receive your CarePortal Card in the mail, you will be guided through the activation process which includes setting your PIN up. If you never set a PIN or misplaced your previous PIN, email careportalcard@careportal.org.  
      mceclip3.png Quick Tip: We recommend writing this PIN down on the paper that comes with your card and keeping it in a safe place such as your church's office.

    		  

  14. What should I do with my receipts from CarePortal Card transactions?

    Receipts can be uploaded on the CarePortal platform by clicking the "Verify Participation" button in your church dashboard under the "Leader Actions" tab, or through the email you receive when the request is closed. Uploading receipts this way is recommended but not required to use the CarePortal Card. Outside of the platform, it's recommended that CarePortal Card holders keep receipts from each transaction for the sake of accountability and oversight with the resources they are being given the opportunity to steward.

  15. Can someone who donates to a need come with the church to meet the family?

    Yes, at the church's discretion and under their leadership, funding responders can be invited to join the response team as they serve the family directly. As long as there is a trained church responder present, additional partners may join as needed or as part of the connection process that God is leading.

  16. What should be done with money left over on the card after we've met the need?

    If your CarePortal Card is loaded with more money than is ultimately used for a particular request, you are welcome to use this leftover money to meet additional open requests through CarePortal in the community. Please remember to still log your receipts for additional purchases. If something happens to where your church is not able to use any of the donated money for the intended request, we ask that you Return Funds to the donor, as described in the next question.

  17. Can my church refund money to a donor if things don't work out?

    Yes, card-holding church leaders for Connecting Churches can elect to refund money to the donor after even if they've completed the Commit & Claim process. This is done on the Leader Actions  tab for the request, and will automatically refund all of the money given for that particular request. See this article for more details.

  18. Will my church receive monthly statements?

    Each CarePortal Card is tied to a single, collective CarePortal Fund managed by The Global Orphan Project, rather than each individual church. Therefore, card-holding churches will not receive monthly statements. Downloadable transaction history for each church's activity is available as needed from the Transactions tab in their CarePortal dashboard.

  19. Can my church have multiple CarePortal Cards?

    Yes, more than one person can have a CarePortal Card requested for them. Additional cards can be requested by your church's Point Person from the CarePortal Card Requests header or the CarePortal Cards header on the Settings tab in their CarePortal dashboard. You can see currently active and pending CarePortal Cards under the CarePortal Cards header and any requested, expired, or declined CarePortal Cards under the CarePortal Card Requests header.

    All cards are connected to the same card balance.

  20. Do donors get tax write-off benefits?

    Yes, as donations to the CarePortal Fund, funds given are considered tax-deductible. CarePortal absorbs the responsibility of creating and sending out all year-end donor letters. 

  21. Who has legal and tax liability for donations?

    For all donations made to the CarePortal fund, CarePortal is responsible for processing funds, issuing donation receipts, and issuing annual tax-deduction statements. Churches using these funds to serve families via the CarePortal Card have no legal or tax obligation for the funds or donors. Churches are accountable to monitor and track their spending as a card user, and must take responsibility for church members who are issued a CarePortal Card by only using the card to meet CarePortal Requests. Using funds to pay for needs unrelated to CarePortal requests is prohibited.

  22. What do I do if my CarePortal Card is lost or stolen?

    Please email careportalcard@careportal.org and we will assist you directly.

  23. What are some examples of inappropriate uses of the CarePortal Card?

    Below are some ways that will lead to your church having your CarePortal Card(s) deactivated in order to protect the trust and credibility of the CarePortal platform.

    - Receiving funds and then using other resources to meet the need (funds should be returned)
    - Receiving funds on your CarePortal Card and not providing the items you've committed to
    - Using leftover card funds for items or services unrelated to CarePortal requests
    - Using leftover card funds to pay for staffing or operational costs of your own ministry programs
    - Providing items with card funds that are not in reliable operating condition 

  24. Can my CarePortal Card be the default payment method for online shopping? 

    No, it's important to remember that CarePortal Cards should never be selected as the default payment method for your Amazon, Walmart, or other online shopping platform to help prevent accidental personal transactions. Sometimes, when adding your CarePortal Card as a new payment method, the shopping platform may automatically select it as your new default card. You must uncheck this box!

    The CarePortal Support Team performs regular sweeps that flag unauthorized transactions.

  25. What do I do if there are unauthorized transactions on my CarePortal Card?

    1. If your church has multiple CarePortal cards, please confirm with the other card holders that the purchases were not made by them.

    2. Send an email to careportalcard@careportal.org so we can block your card from further use. A replacement card will be ordered and sent immediately.

    3. Contact the merchant where the purchase was made to dispute with them directly, documenting all communications.

    4. CarePortal will file a dispute with PEX (card provider) directly.

    5. Disputed funds will be reissued to your card once these steps are completed.

    6. The card holder will be responsible for working with the CarePortal Support Team to make sure all paperwork is completed and submitted on time during the dispute process.

 

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