Contest Rules, Terms and Permissions

Official Rules for the FAPL Photo Contest

1. Eligibility: The 2024 Friendship APL Photo Contest is open only to individuals who are 18 years of age or older. Employees and Board Members of the Friendship APL are not eligible to participate in the submission portion of the contest but are encouraged to “donate” votes to their favorite entries. Photo entries must be of animals still living due to in-person photograph obligations for the winners. This is a voting based contest and chance plays no part in the determination of the winners.
2. Agreement to Official Rules: By submitting an entry in the contest, participants agree to their full and unconditional agreement to, and acceptance of, these official rules. Winning or placing in the contest is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth in these official rules.
3. Photo Entry Period: The photo entry portion of the contest will begin at 12:00:00 AM (Eastern Time) on Tuesday, October 1, 2024 and end at 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time) on Thursday, October 31, 2024. All photo entries must be submitted no later than 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time) on Thursday, October 31, 2024.
4. How to Enter: During the entry period, participants must submit their entries online via the contest’s website http://gogophotocontest.com/FAPL. There is no limit on the number of entries per person, however the same photo cannot be used more than once in different categories. The entry categories are “Dogs”, “Cats”, “Rabbits” and “Pocket Pets”. Any act to subvert the entry process is prohibited and may result in disqualification and removal of entry.
1. Photographs must be a single work of original material taken by the participant.
2. By entering the contest, the entrant represents, acknowledges and warrants that the submitted photograph does not infringe on the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, rights of privacy/publicity or intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and no other party has any right, title, claim or interest in the photograph.
3. The photograph must not contain obscene, provocative, defamatory, sexually explicit or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content.
4. Participants will submit their entry to one of the categories above for a donation amount of $20.
5. Photos with high resolution that are unedited, unaltered and focused are recommended.
6. Photos may include people and other animals, but it is encouraged to have the photo focus on the animal based on the category the photo is submitted under.
5. Voting Terms:
   1. Must be 18 years of age or older to vote.
   2. Voting will take place from 12:00:00 AM (Eastern Time) on Friday, November 1, 2024 to 11:59:59 PM (Eastern Time) on Saturday, November 30, 2024. Vote for your favorite entry by going to http://gogophotocontest.com/FAPL.
   3. There is no limit on the number of votes you can make. Votes are a $1 donation per vote.
   4. Entrants may solicit votes through media platforms and word of mouth, however any votes obtained by fraudulent or inappropriate means, including, without limitation, offering prizes or other inducements to members of the public, payment for votes or offering to trade votes, as determined by FAPL, in our sole discretion, may result in those votes being void and the entry at issue being disqualified.
6. Winner Selection:
   1. There will be a total of 12 winners. Each category (dog, cat, rabbit and pocket pet) will have a first, second and third place winner.
   2. The winner will be determined by one round of online donation based voting that is open to the public from November 1st, 12:00am to November 31st, 11:59am. The entries receiving the top 3 highest vote counts in each category will be awarded the prize (as described in the prize section).
   3. In the event of a tie, the two photos that are tied will be posted to our Facebook page for a tiebreaker. The photo that receives the most “likes” in the tiebreaker will be the winner. If a tiebreaker is necessary, the duration will be for one week, from December 2nd through December 9th.
7. Notification and Requirements of Contest Winners: An individual is not deemed a winner unless and until he/she has complied with these official rules. Potential winners will be notified via email and announced on Facebook live. If a potential winner does not respond and comply with instructions in the notification within five (5) days after the notification is sent or is not in compliance with the official rules, he/she will forfeit the prize and Friendship APL may select an alternate potential winner in their place. By participating, each winner, except where legally prohibited, grants permission for us to announce his/her name on FAPL’s website as a winner and to use his/her name, the winning photo, and prize information for advertising and promotional purposes without further compensation and without notice, review or approval.
8. Prize Section:
   1. The same prize will be awarded to all 12 winners. The prize includes an opportunity for your pet to be the face of our shelter for an entire year! Each winner will have their winning pet, photographed by a professional photographer and then the photo taken by the photographer will be displayed on one of the many windows inside of our shelter, as a window decal. Exact placement of the decals is at Friendship APL’s discretion.
   2. The winning window decals will be displayed in our shelter for one year (January 1st, 2025 to December 31st, 2025). Winners will be given the chance to keep the decal after it has been displayed for one year.
   3. There will also be an additional prize for the overall winner. This will be for the photo who received the most votes overall, regardless of the category. This winner, in addition to the decal prize, will receive a $100 pet photography gift certificate from Megan Macleod Photography.\
   4. Prizes are not transferable and must be accepted as awarded. Winners may not request cash or other prize substitutions.
9. Permissions and Rights Granted: By submitting photographs to the Friendship APL Photo Contest, you agree to the following terms and conditions:
   1. You retain the copyright to all work(s) submitted.
   2. You grant to the Friendship APL a perpetual, royalty-free, fully transferable, unconditional, non-exclusive, worldwide right to reproduce any submission an unlimited number of times in any and all media for any marketing and advertising purposes.
   3. You represent and warrant that: you are the sole owner of, or otherwise have the authority to grant, all rights herein granted to the Friendship APL; and work(s) submitted does not infringe upon any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary right, violate any right of privacy, or contain libelous, scandalous, or unlawful material.

You agree you have read the foregoing, fully understand its contents, and agree to be bound by its terms and conditions.

Who We Are: Friendship APL is a private, independent, non-profit [501(c)(3)] humane society founded in Elyria, Ohio in 1957. We own and operate the largest animal shelter in Lorain County. Our members incorporated on August 30, 1957 as the Lorain County Animal Protective League. We changed our name to Friendship Animal Protective League on October 30, 2005.

How We are Funded: Friendship APL receives no government funding. We depend on the generosity and financial support of friends and neighbors, and on various fundraisers, to serve the people and animals of Lorain County.

2023 Impact Numbers: