It’s still several months away, but planning is under way for the 2007-08 United Way campaign.

“What we want to do is exceed what we did last year,” said Chuck Warner, who is a co-chairman of the drive with his wife, Karen Warner.

The 2006-07 drive brought in $1.63 million, which was a 3.3 percent increase over the $1.58 million raised in 2005-06.

The Warners said they haven’t set the monetary goal for the coming year, but they are laying the groundwork for the campaign.

“At this point, we’re trying to put together our cabinet, which is a group of volunteers who will head the committees, and the divisions that will help us with the fundraising,” Chuck Warner said.

Actual fundraising begins with the Pacesetter Campaign, which goes from mid-August through mid-September. The campaign is designed to provide a jump-start before volunteers begin seeking donations.

The actual campaign runs from mid-September to Nov. 16.

Chuck Warner said they plan to add campaigns that will target commuters and small businesses that don’t have many employees, he said.

United Way serves 26 agencies, which are identified through a screening process “to make sure the funds that you raise are used effectively and efficiently,” he said.

“There are a lot of agencies that serve the youth, like the Boys & Girls Club and the Ballard Center and the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts,” Karen Warner said. “And there are a lot of other agencies that serve people in need, like Women’s Transitional Care.”

The Warners are both Kansas University graduates.

After receiving bachelor’s degrees, both did graduate work at KU, with Chuck earning a law degree and Karen receiving a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction.

They have lived in Lawrence for 40 years and have raised two children.

Karen was an elementary school teacher for 20 years and spent two years working part time as an elementary mathematics coach. She has served on the Lawrence Community Development and Block Grant Advisory Board, the Lawrence Area Schools Council, the Lawrence Hidden Valley Committee and the Lawrence Children’s Choir.

Chuck Warner has been the Lawrence president of US Bank for the past nine years. He serves on the boards of the United Way of Douglas County, Douglas County Development Inc., Cottonwood Foundation and the Lawrence Arts Center Drama Advisory Board.

He has also been a member of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce board of directors, chairman of the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission, past president of the Lawrence Rotary Club and past moderator of Plymouth Congregational Church.