Pet Pantry of Lancaster County, 26 Millersville Road, Lancaster, will host its annual Light The Way holiday lighting ceremony and open house on Saturday, Dec. 2, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Parking will be available at Lowe's Home Improvement, 25 Rohrerstown Road, Lancaster, and a free shuttle service will provide transportation to the event from the store's upper parking lot.

Complimentary food and hot chocolate will be available to attendees of the event. A number of vendors will sell various products, which will include both accessories for pets and holiday gifts for humans. Guests may also shop inside Pet Pantry's thrift store, which will remain open throughout the evening. Santa will be present to take pictures with families and their pets.

At 6 p.m., Pet Pantry will continue its tradition of lighting the exterior of its facility for the holiday season. The organization designates each light on the building to honor the life of a specific person or pet in the Lancaster County. "When we light the building up every year, it lights the way for animals across the county," said Melody Sanders, Pet Pantry's CEO and founder. Tours of Pet Pantry's facility will be offered to provide guests with insight on the many services offered throughout the year.

Light The Way will launch Pet Pantry's monthlong pet food drive, and a truck will be stationed in the Lowe's parking lot to collect donations. Pet Pantry is requesting donations of dry cat food, dry dog food, treats and lightly used pet items that will stock its thrift store. Donations may be dropped off until the end of December during Pet Pantry's regular business hours, which are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, from noon to 7 p.m. "We depend on this drive to get us through the winter month; this is where we come up short," Sanders said. "We always see an increase in demand over the winter months. We started the event because the holidays can be hard for people."

Pet Pantry offers a wide range of services for hundreds of families every month, including affordable spay and neuter procedures and discounted veterinary services. In addition to providing pet owners with free litter, cat food, dog food and treats, Pet Pantry homes more than 500 animals in Lancaster County every year. The organization completed a remodeling project last year to expand its services and hire an additional veterinarian. With this additional team member, Pet Pantry has been able to increase the number of vaccine clinics and other services it offers to the community. Following the renovation, Pet Pantry acquired a new building to house more dog kennels. Sanders said she also plans to utilize the new location as a designated trap-neuter-return clinic for feral cats in the future.

Individual lights are available to purchase for the ceremony. For more information, visit https://petpantrylc.org.