honoring a last request

When I read yesterday that death row inmate Philip Workman's last request -- that in lieu of a last meal, a vegetarian pizza be delivered to a homeless person -- had been denied by the state of Tennessee, I felt sadly unsurprised. This man had attempted to make his last act a selfless one, and was shut down by the authorities -- the very ones who were all set to kill him several hours later.

Today, I've come across this story about how others, similarly outraged, stepped in yesterday to do what the state would not. These private citizens ordered hundreds of pizzas and had them delivered to the Rescue Mission and Oasis Center in Nashville.

Workman himself had been homeless -- and strung out on cocaine -- when he committed the robbery in 1981 that got him arrested. He was convicted of fatally shooting Memphis Police Lt. Ronald Oliver during the robbery. On this last day of his life, he was trying to do something to bring attention to the problem of homelessness, or to at least help someone else who was in need.

From the story on CNN.com:

Cliff Tredway, the director of public relations for the Rescue Mission, said it's more than pizzas that helped that shelter.

"It's the story of a guy whose execution translated into a generous act," he said. "It's people donating to other people they don't know.

I'm so touched by and proud of these people this morning. Stories like these -- which are too few and far between in the reported media -- give me hope that compassion and love are still alive in America.