With his brim pulled low over his eyes and a blue bandanaconcealing his face, the bank robber moved quickly through the roombefore approaching a group of surprised guests and saying, “Whatcan I get y’all tonight?”

State Bank executive by day, Old West thief by night,Brookhaven’s Stan Foster was one of several costumed volunteers whohelped the Brookhaven Animal Rescue League raise record highs atTuesday night’s BARL Celebrity Dinner and Auction.

The annual feast and fundraiser features local elected officialsand community leaders decked out in often ridiculous garb to helpattract dollars for the cause. It is common to see cowboys, cavemenand TV cops roaming between tables at Rusty’s restaurant.

“BARL is a great cause, a great group of folks and it’s justanother reason why Brookhaven is special,” Foster said.

BARL board member and restaurant proprietor Rusty Adcock saidTuesday night’s fundraiser was the most successful in the event’sshort history, with more than 200 guests and volunteers raising$17,264.80, not counting the money he forgot to deposit at night’send.

“I found some more checks I had put in my pocket when I gothome, and my wife was telling me she had some more, so I would say$18,000 would be a good round figure,” he said. “Based on economywoes and everything considered, this was enormous.”

A large crowd, fine donated items for auction andmachinegun-mouthed auctioneer Larry Sims, of Laurel, helped BARLraise what Adcock said was around 15 percent of the organization’sannual income, ensuring that local animals will continue to beneutered, spayed and adopted out to good homes.

“That’s the gist of our whole being, trying to help controloverpopulation of pets,” Adcock said.

Adcock pointed out that a successful fundraiser would not bepossible without his force of costumed volunteers. Perhaps novolunteers are as familiar with BARL’s cause as Dr. Mike Gowan andDr. Bob Watson of Brookhaven Animal Hospital, who came to Rusty’sstraight from Mayberry dressed as Sheriff Andy Taylor and DeputyBarney Fife.

“Without BARL, we would be more overrun with homeless animals,”Watson said. “There would be a great deal of animals that starvedand suffered debilitating diseases. This is the first place I’vebeen able to work that has a group so committed to the animals, andyou can see it.”

Other volunteers – animal lovers all – had their own reasons fordressing up and waiting tables at the fundraiser.

“I love helping the community, and it’s a lot of fun,” saidBrookhaven Honda’s Linda Covington, dressed as Thelma from “Mama’sFamily,” complete with blue-gray wig, pink dress and a seriouslypillow-stuffed rear end.

District 92 Rep. Becky Currie put on a jet-black wig, blackshirt and black nail polish to become Bella Swan from the popularvampire series “Twilight.”

“I love animals, and it’s heartbreaking when you see them andthey don’t have a home,” she said. “This is the least I coulddo.”