New Mexicans dug deep into their pockets and helped the United Way raise more than $25 million last year, a new record.
"The tough economy didn't scare us," Lonnie Talbert, United Way of Central New Mexico annual campaign chairman, said Wednesday. "We were not going to let that stop us from serving central New Mexico."
The charity celebrated its fundraising effort with a spectacular domino exhibit, in which more than 25,000 dominoes configured in a design were toppled. The finale was a series of blocks that revealed the amount raised: $25,121,075.
That figure exceeds the record $25 million United Way of Central New Mexico raised in 2008. The 75-year-old charity had set a goal of $25,075,000. The conservative goal was a result of businesses feeling the economic crunch, but fundraising has more than doubled from $12.5 million in 2003.
The top corporate donors this year were:
� Sandia National Laboratories � $4 million.
� Intel � $3.2 million.
� Presbyterian Healthcare Services � $1.2 million.
� University of New Mexico/UNM Hospital �$1 million.
The dominoes were set up by renowned expert "Domino" Dan Beckerleg of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., who traveled to New Mexico just for the United Way event.
The United Way provides money to services in Bernalillo, Sandoval, Torrance and Valencia counties, including children's, senior, health, literacy, domestic violence and other programs.
