Five Things To Know Today

1.  Today is Wednesday, March 9. The National Weather Service predicts increasing clouds today, with a high temperature near 39 degrees and wind between 9 and 14 mph.   Tonight will be cloudy, with a low around 33 degrees. There's a slight chance of rain after 1 a.m.

2.  Representative Town Meeting gathers at 7:30 p.m. today in the Groton Senior Center to discuss the proposed $133 million school construction program and $6.37 million Thames Street project. The group must decide whether to send the projects forward to voters.  Representative Town Meeting will also vote on transferring $51,000 from the general fund to the town clerk and voter registration office to pay for the May referendum.

3.  Calvary Church in Stonington is offering services for Ash Wednesday at noon and at 7:30 p.m. today. Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent in the Western Christian Calendar, and gets its name from the practice of placing a cross of ashes on the foreheads of people as symbols of their seeking forgiveness. To see the event listing for Calvary, click here.

4.  The Groton Public Library's Book Club  will discuss the novel Brooklyn by Colm Toibin at 7 p.m. today as part of the World of Worlds Ireland program that runs through the month of March.  The book is about a woman who emigrates from Ireland to New York in the 1950s. To see the event listing, click here.

5.  The Dairy Queen on Fort Hill Road will open this season. The franchise was officially transferred Monday to McBride Enterprises, which operates Dairy Queens elsewhere in Connecticut, said Dairy Queen Spokesman Dean Peters.  Although the Groton store is now closed, the new franchise owner plans to open it as soon as possible, Peters said.