Toys R Us is coming back, Water Street Mission's 80,000-pound food drive, and 10,000 of you

The Digest

Toys R Us is coming back to Lancaster County

Is this real? It is. Tanger Outlets Lancaster announced on its Facebook page this weekend that a Toys R Us is coming to the outlets in time for the holidays, with the opening date and the rest of the details still to come. The chain closed every one of its U.S. stores in 2018 after a bankruptcy, and the old Lancaster store sat empty until Penn State Health announced in 2021 that it would turn it into a pediatric clinic. Now the brand is back with 160 standalone stores open across the country this holiday season, 120 of them new, each stocked with a curated run of the most popular toys, and some with candy shops and cafes inside.

Does anyone else remember walking through those doors and watching the aisles go on forever, the bike section you were not allowed to ride in, and the one thing you had already picked out before the car was in park? That place was magical. Your kids are about to find out about that magic, and you get to pretend the trip is for them.

Read more at ABC27 →

Water Street Mission wants 80,000 pounds of food by Dec. 21

Water Street Mission's annual Rescue Mission Food Drive starts today and runs through Dec. 21, with a goal of 80,000 pounds of food, which the Mission says works out to roughly 27 cars' worth. Over the holidays alone it expects to serve close to 27,000 meals to people experiencing homelessness and hand out thousands of bags of groceries, and about 44,000 Lancaster County residents live below the federal poverty line. The ask is simple: fill a bag with non-perishables (peanut butter, rice, pasta, canned soup, canned tuna and chicken, cereal, coffee, no glass) and drop it off.

The Mission's dock at 210 S. Prince St. takes donations Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 4 PM. If downtown is out of the way, participating Weis Markets and M&T Bank branches, Sharp Shopper, Bomberger's in Lititz, Restoration Relief in Ephrata, Sahd Metal Recycling and the AAA offices in Lititz and Centerville are all collecting too. The extra jar of peanut butter in your pantry counts.

Read more at WGAL →

What's happening

Monday

Lancaster Bicycle Club: MTCP Casual Picnic Ride (20 miles) | No-drop 20-mile group ride at a 12 mph average pace; RSVP required | 11 AM | Manheim Township Community Park, 209 Petersburg Rd, Lancaster | No admission listed

Market Monday Pretend-Play Grocery Market | Drop-in mini-grocery pretend play for kids ages 2 to 7 in the Lapp Story Silo | Noon to 4:30 PM | Manheim Township Public Library, 595 Granite Run Drive, Lancaster | No admission listed

Servant Stage Monday Night Class: Acting with Chris Faith | Pay-what-you-will acting class for kids and teens; walk-ins welcome | 6 PM to 7 PM (ages 8-12), 7:15 PM to 8:15 PM (ages 13+) | Lancaster Alliance Church, 210 Pitney Rd, Lancaster | Pay What You Will

Cooks & Books: Baking Techniques & Equipment Swap | Holiday baking techniques talk plus a swap of gently used baking tools; reservations required | 6:15 PM to 7:45 PM | Manheim Township Public Library, 595 Granite Run Drive, Lancaster | Free

Chess Club at West Art | Weekly all-levels chess night hosted by Alfredo of the Lancaster Chess Society | 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM | West Art, Art Bar, 816 Buchanan Ave, Lancaster | No admission listed

MELODRAMA Crash Course: Imitation of Life (Philosophy-Drink-Film) | Week three of the PDF melodrama series screens Douglas Sirk's Imitation of Life | 6:30 PM | Zoetropolis Cinema, 112 N. Water St., Lancaster | No price listed

Tuesday

Lancaster Bicycle Club: CoffeeTue Brickerville Ramble (28 miles) | Social 28-mile Tuesday ride with a coffee stop at Copper Cup in Brickerville; RSVP required | 9 AM | Lititz recCenter, 301 Maple St, Lititz | No admission listed

Kids Art Play at West Art | Messy, hands-on art hour for little kids with educator Christina; paint, clay, collage | 10 AM to 10:45 AM (11 AM class also offered) | West Art, Sanctuary, 816 Buchanan Ave, Lancaster | $20 per class per family

Short Story Discussion Group | First-Tuesday short story discussion for adults in the Board Room; registration required | 2 PM to 3 PM | Lancaster Public Library, 151 North Queen Street, Lancaster | No admission listed

Afternoon Storytime with Ms. Alex | Monthly afternoon storytime for ages 2 to 5 with music, crafts or snacks | 3:30 PM | Aaron's Books, 35 E. Main Street, Lititz | No admission listed, RSVP requested

Yarn Circle | Drop-in knitting and crochet circle for all ages and skill levels; no registration | 6 PM to 7 PM | Strasburg-Heisler Library, 143 Precision Avenue, Strasburg | No admission listed

Out Of This World Book Group: The Dispossessed | Sci-fi and fantasy book group discusses Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed | 6:30 PM | Aaron's Books, 35 E. Main Street, Lititz | No admission listed

Trivia Night at Tellus360 | Weekly 21+ pub trivia with rotating topics; craft draft special 4 to 6 PM | 7 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | No admission listed

Now Playing

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical | Carole King's story from Brooklyn songwriter to Tapestry, final week, closes Nov. 7 | Tue 11/3 11:30 AM lunch and 1 PM show, Wed through Sat 6 PM dinner and 7:30 PM show, closes Sat Nov. 7 | Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre, 510 Centerville Rd., Lancaster | $55 show only; $78 matinee or $83 evening dinner and show, plus $3 per-ticket fee

JOSHUA | Sight & Sound's original production, from the Jordan River to the walls of Jericho, through Dec. 31 | Tue through Thu, 11 AM and 3 PM, Fri and Sat shows this week sold out | Sight & Sound Theatres, 300 Hartman Bridge Rd., Ronks | $82 to $104 adults ages 13+, $44 children ages 2 to 12

The Christmas Rush | Bird-in-Hand Stage's new holiday musical comedy, runs through Dec. 31 | Tue 11/3 and Wed 11/4 1 PM and 7 PM, Thu 7 PM, Fri 1 PM, Sat 1 PM and 7 PM, through Dec. 31 | Bird-in-Hand Stage, 2760 Old Philadelphia Pike, #A, Bird-in-Hand | Show only $47 adults, $18 children; dinner and show Mon through Thu $73.50 adults, $34 children

The 2026 Christmas Show: Winter Wonderland | AMT's 2026 Christmas show opens, Bavarian village to the North Pole with a live orchestra, through Dec. 30 | Opens Tue 11/3 at 3 PM, then Wed, Thu and Fri this week, runs through Dec. 30 | American Music Theatre, 2425 Lincoln Hwy East, Lancaster | see site

Live music

Monday

The Starlite Trio | Live trio | 5:30 PM | Beccafico, 27-31 E. Main St., Lititz | No cover listed

Open Mic Artist Sessions w/ Henry Devorick | Open mic / singer-songwriter | 7 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | Free

Tuesday

Old Time Jam w/ Danny Mulligan | Old-time / string band jam | 6:30 PM | West Art, 816 Buchanan Ave., Lancaster | No cover listed

Open Mic at 551 West hosted by Dan Jamison | Acoustic open mic | 7 PM | 551 West, 551 W. King St., Lancaster | No cover listed