Daily Five: A Wage Increase for Teachers And Winners of the Holiday Lights Parade

1.  Today is Thursday, Dec. 6.  The National Weather Service predicts sunny skies and a high temperature of 41 degrees. Clouds will increase tonight and the low will fall to 35 degrees.

2.  The Groton Town Council on Tuesday gave its approval to the Board of Education’s negotiated contract with the Groton Education Association. The contract, which covers about 450 teachers in Groton, would cover the period from Sept. 1, 2013 until Aug. 31, 2016 and provide step wage increases totaling 2.75 percent the first year, 2.5 percent the second year and 2.25 percent the third year.

3.  Here are the winners in four categories from the Groton Holiday Lights Parade, as announced by the Groton Business Association:

Finest Illumination:  Timbuck 2 Garden Center

Sounds of the Season:  Fitch High School

Most Creative:  The Black Hawk

Best Children’s Entry:  Cub Scout Pack 41 

The parade was held Dec. 1 along Route 1 and attracted thousands of people.

4.  The annual Festival Of Lights at Olde Mistick Village starts at dusk and ends at 9:30 p.m. on Friday. The Village will be lit with more than 3,000 luminaries, Mystic Aquarium will have another 1,000 on its grouns, and the Howard Johnson’s Mystic and McDonald’s will participate. There will be free refreshments in the Meeting House, holiday music and other entertainment from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m.

5.  Groton-based Charter Oak Federal Credit Union’s giving program has awarded $19,000 to 10 groups as part of its fourth-quarter community giving, according to a press release.

Donations went to Catholic Charities in Norwich, which supports families’ basic needs; the City of Norwich; the Connecticut Radio Information System, the only radio reading service in Connecticut for people with disabilities; Habitat for Humanity of Southeastern Connecticut; Ledyard Social Services; LifeFAQs.org, Inc., which helps disadvantaged students in the Greater New London area; the Muscular Dystrophy Association; Northeast Communities Against Substance Abuse; Norwich Human Services; and Safe Futures, a domestic violence prevention agency.