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Jordan Harris’s parents were beaming with pride at Sunday’s 20th annual Cummings Centre Foundation Sports Celebrity Breakfast.

The 23-year-old Canadiens defenceman was named Sports Personality of the Year at the event, which raises money for the Cummings Jewish Centre for Seniors Foundation. Organizers said Sunday’s event raised more than $415,000, bringing the 20-year total to about $3.5 million.

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Harris’s parents, Peter and Ginny, have much to be proud of.

Not only has Harris made it to the NHL, he is also one of the nicest young men I have ever met. He is so polite with everyone he meets — from fans to media members — along with being intelligent, articulate and thoughtful.

As Rob Ramage, the Canadiens director of player development, put it at the start of training camp two years ago when talking about Harris: “He’s a wonderful young man. I’ve always said if he’s not a hockey player he could be a future president of the United States.”

Harris is also the only Black/Jewish player in the NHL, with his mother being Jewish. He’s part of the NHL Player Inclusion Coalition that was launched last year to advance equality and inclusion in the sport both on and off the ice.

“I was really lucky the way me and my brother (Elijah) were raised because we got to experience so many different aspects in cultures and people,” said Harris, who was presented with the Sports Personality of the Year award by Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki. “Passover and so many great memories that we’ll have and I think it’s really helped me out in life and in hockey because you meet people of all different sorts. Especially in hockey, you play with different teammates from Europe, Canada, the U.S. and it helps you become a good person and that’s what I try to get out and do every day. I think I’m very lucky to have grown up like that because not everybody has that. There’s a lot of hatred out there in the world.”

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Before Sunday’s breakfast, Harris was busy signing autographs and posing for photos with Canadiens fans of all ages while his parents looked on from a few feet away.

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“It’s humbling,” Harris’s mother said as she watched her son.

Harris is from Haverhill, Mass., and grew up as a Boston Bruins fan. He still remembers former Bruins forward Marco Sturm showing up at one of his youth hockey practices and posing with him for a photo.

“I still have the picture up on my fridge as a magnet,” Harris said with a smile.

“Now, to be in this position on the other side of it is very surreal,” Harris added. “You never know how you can make a person’s day by signing a kid’s hat and it takes two seconds out of my life, but that kid might carry that memory for the rest of his life and pushing towards his goals if he wants to be a hockey player or she wants to be a hockey player or whatnot. So to be on the other side of that I’m still kind of getting used to it and it means as much to me as hopefully it means to them.”

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Harris’s parents encouraged him to complete his four years at Northeastern University and graduate with a degree in business administration before turning pro and that’s exactly what he did.

“Hockey’s always going to be there, but the academics is something he had to stick with and really make that a priority,” Harris’s father said. “After hockey that (education) is going to be there.”

Harris wants to be more than just a hockey player and he showed that again Sunday with the way he mingled with fans before the event. His name has been the subject of trade rumours with the Canadiens having an abundance of young defenceman while looking to acquire forwards who can provide offence, but Harris is taking it all in stride. He hopes to stay in Montreal but added the possibility of a trade is out of his control so he will focus on what he can control, including his training for next season.

On Sunday, his focus was on fans at the breakfast.

“It shows that life is about more than just hockey,” he said. “Hockey is the thing I love and do and work so hard towards. To see this event come together and see how much of an impact you can have outside of just the sport for the Jewish community and for the foundation here. Just to meet all the people here today is so huge and important and I really don’t take that lightly the impact you can have and bring a smile to a kid’s day by signing a jersey … that goes a long way. I know that from experience. I was that kid. It’s really special to be here.”

What makes Harris’s mother most proud about her son?

“I think just that he’s a good person,” she said. “He’s a good-hearted person.”

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