VGS Latest News & Tips: 31 Mar 2015

Meeting Reminder - Tomorrow, April 1:
French Canadian Genealogy SIG Meeting:
John DeAngelo, guest speaker.

9:30 AM in the Julio Iglesias Room at the La Hacienda Recreation Center.

Star in an Ancestry TV Commercial:
I sometimes wonder what is going on at ancestry.com and who comes up with their ideas. Last Thursday morning, March 26th, I received an email wanting to know if I was interested in being part of an ancestry.com TV commercial. The email stated: "Since you’re an Ancestry member familiar with both the site and AncestryDNA, your experience is invaluable to us. We’d love to hear about it and maybe even feature you in a new commercial."

I clicked on the link that read "Tell us your story" to see what this was all about. Here is what they were looking for:

"Tell us a bit about yourself in 3 minutes or less in a video that I would have to make. They were most interested in learning: How did you get started using Ancestry and AncestryDNA? and How did you feel when you made these discoveries?"

They even gave me some video filming tips.

• Center yourself in the camera shot

• Speak clearly

• Try to be complete with your answers

• Keep background noise to a minimum

I needed to make my video that day since they needed the information by March 27. 

Really!

New Collections Recently Added to FamilySearch:

Over the past month, FamilySearch.org has added 41 new collections of records. The collections combined include more than 32 million records from around the world. Tow of those collections that were included are the Hawaii, Passenger Lists of Airplanes Departing Honolulu, 1942-1948 and the
California, Airplane Passenger Lists from Honolulu, Hawaii, 1947-1948. I have found several ancestors that were military personnel travelling during or after World War II.
See the complete list...

New Traditional View in Family Tree:

If you've logged in to Family Tree lately and thought “Wow. That looks different,” you’re right: The Traditional Pedigree view on FamilySearch has received a major upgrade that adds a new look and easier access to key information.
Read more on What's New...

familytree UNIVERSITY: Polish Genealogy 101

Poland’s long history is fraught with border changes, ethnic strife, and an ongoing quest for autonomy. If you’re among the more than 10 million Americans with Polish roots, we’ll help you find your Polish ancestors by debunking myths, explaining history, and pointing you to the most useful records.
Read more...  Find out what you will learn, cost and how to enroll.

This Day in History:

31 March 1992: the USS Missouri, the last active United States Navy battleship, is decommissioned in Long Beach, California.

31 March 1970: Explorer 1 reenters the Earth's atmosphere after 12 years in orbit.

31 March 1931: Knute Rockne, head football coach at the University of Notre Dame, is one of eight killed as TWA Flight 599 crashes near Bazaar, Kansas.