The Daily Five: Fundraisers for Victims of Violence And How To Avoid Becoming One

1. Weather.com is predicting a mostly cloudy day with a high temperature of 42 degrees and an overnight low of 37 degrees. Tonight there's 100 percent chance of rain, starting with showers that will become increasingly steady and heavy. There's a chance some sleet may be part of the mix.

2. Last week, Crescent Beach BNI sponsored a networking event at Main Street Grille in Niantic to raise money for the family of . More than 150 people attended, paying $5 a head that, combined with donations and raffle items, raised $3,200 to benefit Seidel's widow, Kate, and the couple's three children.

3. On Saturday, March 2, friends and family of Matt Staub will be holding a fundraiser from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at East Lyme Middle School. The 27-year-old Niantic man is still hospitalized with severe head injuries that he suffered during a fight at a Groton bar last month. There will be a pasta dinner, along with raffle baskets, to raise money to assist Matt with future expenses. 

If you are unable to attend but would like to help, you can make a donation via checks made out to: The Cactus Jack Foundation/Matt Staub and sent directly to Chelsea Groton Bank 157 Boston Post Road Waterford, CT 06385 Attn: Ann Ogden TAX ID# 06-1603148. 

4. East Lyme Youth Services [ELYS] is offering all manner of courses and activities for kids these days. For instance, it's teamed up with Gabriele's Martial Arts to offer a free "Child Abduction Prevention and Self Defense Course" for students grades 5-8. The classes will be held every Thursday starting from February 28 until March 21 at East Lyme Middle School from 3 to 4 p.m.

East Lyme Youth Services is also planning new American Girl events for this spring, sewing classes, and has just put together the roster for its upcoming talent show. For more information about upcoming programs, contact ELYS at (860) 739-6788.  

5. The shooting at Sandy Hook continues to dominate the national stage in so many ways, from the NASCAR driver competing in the Daytona 500 as a tribute to Sandy Hook the ongoing debate about gun control and school safety. It also lives on in social media, but not in a way that sits well with all of the victims' families, some of whom are asking Facebook to take down tribute sites that they say their loved ones would not have appreciated.

Connecticut politicians have also intervened on their behalf to ask Facebook to ensure that offending sites are removed and to monitor sites closely for potential scams involving donations.