White Rock YMCA board members kept quoting the Will Ferrell movie “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” in the February meeting regarding their fundraising drive. “If you’re not first, you’re last,” Greg Courtwright told his fellow board members. “And we’re definitely not last.” The board members have something to celebrate: For the first time ever, the YMCA at White Rock achieved its annual fundraising goal before any of the area’s 21 other YMCA branches. The branch also raised more money than ever, exceeding its goal of $180,000 by at least $20,000. “We were the first branch to make goal,” says Courtwright, who coordinated the fundraising efforts. “It’s amazing that we beat Highland Park.” It’s an amazing increase in dollars, too. When Helen Gonzalez-Crawford joined the board eight years ago, the fundraising goal was about $80,000. She credits the branch’s executive director, Derek Smith (pictured at left), for the improvement. The branch’s goal was 50 percent higher this year than in 2008, when Smith started at the branch. “He made such an impact on us,” she says. “He brought in fresh ideas and just energy.” Smith attributes the success to fundraising leaders who are becoming better at “articulating the story” of the YMCA, which provides scholarships to children whose families cannot afford summer camp, team sports or childcare. The branch also buys suits for low-income children participating in the YMCA’s Youth in Government contests. “It’s not just about teaching swimming lessons, that’s for sure,” Gonzalez-Crawford says. Although, it is that, too. The White Rock YMCA sends swim instructors to apartment complexes, offering free lessons to children who don’t have transportation to the branch. Board members encouraged donors to give $1,000, enough for one of the large banners that hang in the workout area and display the donor’s name. Last year there were about 75 banners, and this year, they expect 100 or more. YMCA White Rock celebrated its fundraising landmark with a party at Times Ten Cellars in March. As Courtwright told board members at the February meeting, “Winners get to do what they want.”