John Patrick Harrington, born in Ontario, Oregon on December 5, 1922 passed away at his home of more than 50 years on January 5th. He was 98 years old. He is preceded in death by his wife, Isabel Harrington. Patrick is survived by his son, Mark Harrington and daughter, Lori Jasper and her grandchildren, Jacob, aged 17 and Julia aged 14. Patrick grew up in Oregon and was raised alone by his mother, Francis Harrington from the age of five years old. In high school, Patrick helped out with family expenses and had jobs picking beans, making mashed potatoes, and canning. After graduating from high school in 1942, Patrick enrolled in the Navy during World War II and worked as a radio engineer overseas. Patrick was awarded several medals for his service during World War II. He was discharged from the Navy in 1945 and began working for Southern Pacific Railroad as a telegrapher. Taking advantage of the GI bill, Patrick enrolled at the University of Oregon and studied accounting. After graduating, Patrick worked for Southern Pacific as a systems analyst at the company headquarters in San Francisco. He met his wife Isabel at a dance for Catholic singles in the mid-1060s and was married on April 25, 1965. Shortly afterward, Isabel and Patrick moved to San Jose and began raising their children. Patrick commuted during the workweek to and from San Francisco via CalTrain and didn’t return home until after the kids had gone to bed. Patrick enjoyed his work and was responsible for developing the first automated computer system for freight railroads using punch cards.
After an early retirement, Patrick decided to learn how to ski and took many trips to Lake Tahoe. During the off season, Patrick took a ski readiness class at the YMCA where he and Isabel were long-time members. Patrick and Isabel also learned how to camp in retirement and enjoyed many trips to Bass Lake with friends. Patrick and Isabel took trips to Europe, to Washington DC and to Alaska on a cruise. Though he became a grandparent late in life, Patrick made up for lost time. Known as “Papa” to his grandkids, he loved to shower them with gifts every time they visited. Patrick was a devoted Catholic and he and Isabel attended Mount St. Joseph Carmelite Monastery in the eastern San Jose foothills. Patrick and Isabel lived independently until a few years ago, when caregivers joined their family to take care of them during the day with their son Mark taking care of them at night. Patrick was a humble, kind-hearted, and generous man, truly a gentleman.
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