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• Just a reminder: You have until Monday at 11:59 p.m. ET to register for our Family
  Tree Magazine VIP giveaway! Some lucky person will win a free one-year VIP subscription,
  which includes a subscription to the print magazine, a Family Tree Plus membership
  (giving you access to exclusive how-to articles on our website), tuition discounts
  at Family Tree University, 10 percent
  off every ShopFamilyTree.com order, and our Family Tree Toolkit. Register
  here for your chance to become a Family Tree VIP for free! 

• The Minnesota Department of Human Services is gathering bids for a project to digitize
  5 million pages of old adoption records dating as far back as the late 19th century.
  The records are now on about 2,000 rolls of microfilm and likely include thousands
  of adoptions (the exact number isn’t known because files vary in length). Adoption
  records in Minnesota become public after 100 years, according
  to TwinCities.com, and 2017 is the 100-year anniversary of the law mandating adoption
  recording. 

• The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) has started
  a new society to promote the preservation of records in the National Archives and
  Records Administration. The Society
  of Preservation Patriots will recognize those who’ve contributed $250 or more
  to FGS’s Stern-NARA Gift Fund or to its Preserve
  the Pensions initiative (which supports the digitization of War of 1812 pensions). Learn
  more about the society and how to become a member on the FGS Voice blog.
  

• The official bloggers for the RootsTech
  2013 conference, taking place March 21-23 in Salt Lake City, are holding giveaways
  for RootsTech registrations. Bloggers set their own means of entry; visit each blog
  (find a list here) to learn how to
  enter that blog’s giveaway.

• You might’ve heard about HBO’s upcoming fictional genealogy series, “Family Tree.”
  It stars Chris O’Dowd as a Brit who occupies himself by investigating his family history
  after he loses his job and his relationship. Thanks to contributing editor Rick Crume
  for sending me a link
  to an Entertainment Weekly article about the show. Do you plan to watch?