Diane Baker likes to say Hormel Foods Corp. workers make her first year leading the annual United Way of Mower County campaign easy.

It’s easy to see why. That’s because Hormel workers again made up more than 40 percent of the United Way’s annual campaign. Hormel cooperate workers surpassed their goal by almost than $6,000, as they pledged $275,915 to the 2014 United Way campaign Friday afternoon.

“It makes my job easier,” said Baker, who took over as executive director earlier this year. “When you can count on a donation that big, I’m guaranteeing programs in the community.”

The corporate workers — like the plant employees who raised $150,895 — broke their previous giving record. Steve Borgerding, a financial analyst and the co-chair of the corporate offices United Way drive, said he’d hoped to top last year’s $268,511 and was pleased to surpass it.

“I think you can easily see the generosity of the employees of the company,” he said. “I think this is just another example of the way that so many employees try to give back to the community where they live and work.”

This was Borgerding’s fourth year working with the campaign, and he said his job is easy since so many workers give to the cause.

“I think the United Way is a great way of giving back, so being involved in this is pretty easy,” he said. “It’s fun to work with people who are passionate about working with their communities.”

Baker said having more than 40 percent of the campaign totals come from Hormel eases pressure during the campaign; however, she said it takes the entire community to meet this year’s $1.1 million goal.

“There’s still a lot of work to do,” Baker said. “We really need that goal, because the need is there.”

It’s not just Hormel, as other campaigns grew significantly this year. Mower County employees and Mayo Clinic Health System in Austin both saw increases, according to Baker.

“We have a lot of smaller campaigns that are done every year and they just continue to do a really nice job,” Baker said.

While larger pledges like Hormel and Quality Pork Processors, which is set to make its pledge later this month, often garner more attention, Baker was thankful for the support of all local residents and businesses.

“It’s all the little ones, because every dollar adds up and it all counts,” Baker said.