Update on Community Support Payments
Dear Valued Supporters,
You may have received an automated email stating that your recurring payment could not be processed and that your membership was canceled or you may have been on our website trying to submit a payment and encountered an problem submitting a payment. These messages were real and not an error. Shortly after our February Valentine’s Day event, we were abruptly cut-off from our previous payment processor. Over the past month we have been working diligently to sign-on with a new processor and get payments back online. We are happy to say we now have a new processor and we can again transact online!
Why This Happened
Our previous processors, including Squarespace, Stripe, Square, and PayPal/Venmo, do not support dating or matchmaking services and categorize businesses like ours as “high risk.”
This classification is common in the industry and is typically based on factors such as potential charge disputes, recurring billing concerns, and additional regulatory requirements.
To be clear, Ahava Northwest is not experiencing any issues with our members or services. This change is simply the result of processor policies toward dating services.
Continue Supporting Ahava Northwest
Because we had to change processors, all recurring membership payments were automatically canceled when payments could not be processed by the former processor or by manual cancelation from our team.
Many members choose to support Ahava Northwest through a small monthly membership that helps cover the costs of maintaining our database, hosting events, and continuing to grow the Jewish community in the Pacific Northwest.
If you would like to continue or start your membership support, please sign up again on the Community Support page using the new payment system.
To continue supporting Ahava Northwest:
Choose a monthly membership or one-time contribution
Enter your payment details in the new system
Membership support is completely optional and does not affect your ability to receive matches or participate in the community. Your profile and matchmaking status remain fully active regardless of whether you choose to contribute.
Updated Matchmaking Model
Over December and January we also refined parts of our matchmaking model. If you have not reviewed the site recently, we recommend taking a moment to look over the current matchmaking sign-up page and FAQs. These pages outline how our process works today and answer many common questions about the service.
February was our busiest month yet, and we continue to meet with new members and introduce matches within our database.
Thank you for your patience and continued support as we complete this transition.
Warmly,
Whitney & Beni
Ahava Northwest ♥️