Fundraising campaign a United effort; Employee, corporation and individual donations help United Way of the Greater Capital Region give back to the community.(Capitaland Quarterly)

Byline: LEIGH HORNBECK - Staff Writer

U nited Way CEO Kathy Pelham tells a story of conservative, grown men who dressed in sumo wrestler costumes and charged at each other while their employees watched - all in the name of charity.

September through December is United Way fundraising time, and campaign managers will stage spectacles and offer incentives to encourage co-workers to contribute.

"Things that make it fun and appeal to people's sense of humor seem to work the best," said Pelham, who leads the new United Way of the Greater Capital Region following the May merger of United Way's Northeastern New York and Schenectady County chapters.

The motivation tactics work: 80 percent of the budget at the local level comes from employee and corporate donations. In all, more …