Newtown Lions Club is planning its third annual Model Train Show event to benefit childhood cancer research.

The show will be presented Sunday, October 26, from 10 am to 2:30 pm, at Newtown Community Center, 8 Simpson Street.

This year the Lions will also host a Halloween Costume Parade as part of the 2025 Benefit Model Train Show. The parade will be a fun festive event for children age 12 and under to show off their costumes. Prizes will be awarded, and all participants will leave with a goodie bag.

The event will feature several different operating model railroads encompassing over 1,700 square feet. Attendees will have an opportunity to win a Lego model railroad.

For the serious and occasional hobbyist there will also be Model Railroading Clinics to teach the beginner and experienced modeler methods of developing creative model railroads. Several vendors attending will be selling model railroad equipment, accessories for do-it-yourself modeling (DIY), and much more.

There will be lectures on area railroads, as well as door prizes, food trucks, and video and slide presentations on historic railroads throughout the day.

As mentioned earlier, the show is being hosted to raise funds to support childhood cancer charities in Connecticut.

Peter McNulty, Train Show Committee chairman, said, “Childhood cancer is one of the most difficult experiences a family can endure. This year the Lions have joined the Tommy Fund Team for childhood cancer support at Yale New Haven’s Childhood Cancer Hospital and the Smilow Cancer Hospital. The Newtown Lions Club Foundation actively supports research for childhood cancer as one of the five major pillars the Lions serve.”

According to National Cancer Institute (NCI), in the United States in 2023, an estimated 9,910 new cases of cancer were diagnosed among children from birth to 14 years, and about 1,040 children are expected to die from the disease. The estimated new cancer cases among adolescents and young adults in this country was estimated to be greater than 85,000. This amounts to approximately 4.4% of all new cancer cases at any age.

Also according to NCI, while cancer death rates for the age group birth to 14 years have declined by 70% from 1970 through 2020, cancer remains the leading cause of death from disease among children. The most common types of cancer diagnosed in children ages 0-14 years are leukemias, brain and other central nervous system tumors, and lymphomas.

Admission to the Newtown Lions Club Model Train Show is $8 in advance for adults ($10 door), $5 for ages 9-12, and free for age 8 and under. For additional information or advance tickets visit newtownlions.org.