Renee McKiver, 60, of Groton died August 31, 2013 surrounded by her family at home. Services are pending with Paetznick-Garness Funeral Chapel, Groton.

• WASHINGTON (AP) -- Secretary of State John Kerry is asserting the United States now has evidence of sarin gas use in Syria and says the "case is building" for a military attack.
• A day after President Barack Obama stepped back from his threat to launch an attack, Kerry says in a series of interviews on the Sunday news shows that the administration learned of the sarin use through samples of hair and blood provided to Washington by first responders in Damascus.
• Kerry also says confident that Congress will give Obama its backing for a military strike against Syria. But the former senator also says the president has authority to act on his own if Congress doesn't give its approval.
• Congress is scheduled to return from a summer break on Sept. 9.