The Harrington Family Foundation

When he was a teen-ager, Joey Harrington told himself that one day he'd be a different father than his father.

"When he's sticking to his guns, and raising us according to our family beliefs, and you're sitting in the living room having a conversation with him about how you missed curfew by 15 minutes, I would think `Oh, I'll never be like him. When my kids miss curfew by 10 minutes, I'm going to be so lenient,' " Harrington said.

"It's funny. I told him this about a year ago: When I was 18, I thought he was way off base. When I was 19, after I left for school, I realized he was right, but I didn't have the guts to tell him.

"By the time I turned 21, I realized how right he was, what he was trying to do, and I was able to thank him for it."

Joey Harrington is 24 now, a multi-millionaire quarterback, drafted No. 3 by the Detroit Lions, a starter last season as a rookie, and he has the wherewithal to be anywhere in the world today.

Yet one of Oregon's most famous sons will be home in Portland for Father's Day, because there's no other place where Joey Harrington can be an average Joe anymore, and nothing he values more than time with his family and friends, and he can afford a lot of value now.

Harrington remains in close contact with his parents, Valerie and John, who are involved in the foundation established to oversee the young quarterback's philanthropy. The Harrington Family Foundation will focus on the education, health and safety of children, and on Monday will announce a contribution to the University of Oregon, where Joey starred.

John Harrington, 55, himself a former Oregon quarterback, is retiring as a high school principal in Portland, after 34 years in education, and will likely devote even more time to the foundation, which itself is a reflection of the values passed from parents to son.

"He seems to have grasped, at an early age, that he is fortunate beyond measure and that he has a responsibility to share his good fortune," John Harrington said.

Father taught son how to throw a football, and so much more.

"Dad's a straight shooter," Joey said. "He's very simple in what he believes and very, dare I say, old-fashioned compared to some of today's standards.

"He's not a flashy guy, he's not flamboyant, but when he speaks, you listen. He has a presence.

"The best way to make him proud is to work hard. He's the kind of guy who won't let the dishes sit in the sink. He's the kind of guy who jumps out and mows the lawn before we wake up on a Saturday morning. He's the ultimate example for a young child and the ultimate example for an adult, as well."

In the past year John Harrington has become "a sounding board," helping the young quarterback in an area in which Joey admits that he's uncomfortable - dealing with the unfathomable prominence and visibility that come with being Joey Harrington, NFL quarterback.

"His world is different than yours and mine now, in who he comes in contact with," John Harrington said. "Grown men, grown people, who clamor for an autograph, or to be part of a golfing foursome. ...That comes with the territory."

Said Joey: "When I'm struggling with that side of my life, my dad has always been able to help me put things in perspective. He usually tells me a story about some little kid who came up to him wearing my jersey or said `Hey, Mr. Harrington, will you tell Joey this?'

"And it's always something that's very innocent, and very genuine, and it reminds me that no matter how much I may struggle with the new part of my job, he and my family will help me keep things in perspective."

Last year, for John's birthday, Joey surprised his father with a trip to the Masters, the two of them.

"He was a kid in the candy store," Joey said. "He never stopped smiling that entire weekend."

Which, for John Harrington, had something to do with experiencing one of sport's truly special events, and, no doubt, as much to do with whom he shared it.