Larry Crow and his friends, Donnie Barnwell and Clay Penny, caught two big fish on Thursday, April 16 in the Sulphur River on throw lines with perch as bait. His biggest catch was a 54 pound Appoloosa Catfish. His other catch was 46 pounds. In the past week, they have caught 34 other fish ranging in weight from eight to 35 pounds.

The annual meeting of the Macon Cemetery Association will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 2 at the cemetery. Anyone interested in the cemetery is encouraged to attend the event and should bring their lawn chairs. The cemetery is located on CR SE 4150. Donations may be mailed to the Macon Cemetery Association, P.O. Box 228, Mount Vernon, Tex., 75457.

The City of Mount Vernon is hoping to bring couples together. Humans and animal companions will be matched through the city’s Adopt-A-Pet program. See the April 23 edition of the Optic-Herald for more information.

Nominations are now being accepted in the search for America’s Oldest Worker being sponsored by nonprofit Experience Works, the nation’s largest training and employment organization for older workers.  See the April 23 edition of the Optic-Herald for more information.

The unemployment rate for Franklin County in March 2009 was at 5.5 percent with 306 individuals unemployed. The rate is lower than it was in February at 5.7 percent with 313 people unemployed.See the April 23 edition of the Optic-Herald for more information.