Hard times have a way of bringing out the best in people. We’ve seen that recently in the outpouring of support for earthquake victims in Haiti. Closer to home, we’ve seen the same compassion and generosity help the United Way of Washtenaw County achieve its fund-raising goal for 2009.

Amid cheers and hoopla, United Way announced that it had topped its fund-raising goal of $5.1 million, a remarkable achievement in this difficult economy. The success of the 2009 campaign speaks well of United Way’s effort, and says even more about us as a community.

The odds were against a successful campaign from the beginning. The United Way has a “gap report’’ that measures how much past giving is lost when companies close or former donors move out of the community. Last year’s gap report tallied a loss of some $750,000.

Finding itself in that kind of a hole, the United Way could have lowered its expectations. Instead, it rose to the challenge. It ran an energized and well-organized campaign that engaged potential donors in new ways with a compelling message about United Way’s mission to help those in need.

Even those efforts might have fallen short. Early in January, United Way announced it was still somewhere between $200,000 and $300,000 short of meeting its goal. But an influx of last-minute giving pushed it over the top, allowing Campaign Chairman Tim Marshall to announce that donations not only met the previous year’s total, but exceeded it by more than $42,000.

Success could not have come at a better time. Local agencies are seeing more demand for their services, and constantly struggle to meet that need. The United Way funds more than 50 health and human services programs run by 35 nonprofits. Its ability to meet its goal is a welcome relief both to local agencies and to the people who turn to them for help.

While a number of factors contributed to the success of this year’s campaign, the increasing level of support that the United Way has received from the University of Michigan and its employees certainly helped make a difference. The United Way and U-M have strengthened their partnership in recent years, and this year, the university community contributed more than $1 million to the campaign. That has been important in helping offset losses from elsewhere.

In recent days, we’ve seen powerful, horrible images of the devastation in Haiti, and our community has joined the world in responding with aid. That is commendable, but we have human need close to home, too. That people can generously support the United Way and still reach even deeper to respond to an international disaster is a testament to the best in all of us.

We congratulate the United Way on its successful campaign. We could all use some good news and some success in these hard times. To see that success come in a way that meets real human need is the best news of all.