Parley P. Pratt: Escaped Convict?

Aim and I went to watch Stephen run in a 6K today in Tallahassee.  After the race I saw a guy wearing a T-shirt that read: "Parley P. Pratt Memorial Freedom Run/Walk." According to the shirt the race is held in Columbia, Missouri. My curiosity was immediately piqued.  I thought "how many Parley P. Pratts can there be in this world?"

I asked the guy if he knew who Parley P. Pratt was. He said, "I think he was an escaped convict who broke out of jail and got away on foot." The thought crossed my mind that his shirt might actually be referring to a different Parley P. Pratt than the one I know. I asked him if he knew when the convict escaped from jail. He said he thought it was sometime during the 1800's.

I thought how strange it is that there are people out there who know nothing about the men and women who played such a major part in restoring the gospel to the earth. People who know nothing about the original members of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in our dispensation. People who know nothing about the suffering of the early Saints in Missouri or how and why the Mormons ended up in Utah. Would this guy think any different if he knew that Parley P. Pratt was an Apostle of the Lord? Was John the Revelator just a convict stuck on an island? Was Paul just a convict trapped in Rome?

I told the guy that our family belonged to the same church Parley P. Pratt did.  I told him we are Mormons (sorry President Packer) and that Parley P. Pratt was one of the great writers and Apostles of the early Mormon Church. He didn't seem very interested. I then told him that my son, Stephen, had just won the race. He was more interested in that.  We talked about the race for another thirty minutes or so before parting ways.

I get the feeling after our conversation that the only thing the guy knows about Mormons is that Mormons like to run.  Oh well.  Maybe a seed has been planted.