Replacing Fr. Borges was Fr. John de Fontes Ferraz, a competent leader and a priest with insight and vision. Fr. Ferraz was born in Ponta Delgada, St. Michael, Azores on January 08, 1880, son of Joao and Joanna (Correia) Ferraz. He was ordained on January 18, 1903 and served in the Azores and was a well known teacher. Fr. Ferraz came to this country in 1911 and served at Espirito Santo Parish before becoming pastor of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal Parish on Tucker Street in 1915, constructing the new church. On January 26, 1917, Father Ferraz was named pastor of Saint Michael Parish.

An immediate concern of Fr. Ferraz was the construction of the Church. Within a short time, it was determined that instead of constructing a new church building, it was much more feasible to add upward to the exisiting basement church. In October 1921, work began on the construction of the Church and was completed in the Fall of 1922. The church of gothic style with Spanish accents was dedicated on December 03, 1922. The construction was completed by the Charles Hodgate Company of Boston.

During this period, Fr. Ferraz was asked to officially begin to serve the people of Assonet who had no parish of their own. Fr. Ferraz, in addition to his responsibilities here, would travel up North Main Street to celebrate Mass and the Sacraments in parishioner’s homes. Our baptism register shows evidence of many Portuguese children, as well as children with English surnames, among the newly baptized. Due to the leadership of Fr. Ferraz, Saint Bernard Parish was finally established in Assonet and a new pastor was named there. In the early years of the parish, our priests were also responsible for celebrating Mass for the Portuguese community of Saint Peter Parish in Dighton.

In the late 1920’s, it was a concern of Fr. Ferraz to minister to the Portuguese community across the river in Somerset. After consultation with the Bishop, the beloved Fr. Augusto Leal Furtado, parochial vicar at our parish, was sent to Somerset as the first pastor to establish a new community. Young, vibrant and filled with energy, Fr. Furtado worked to gather a community and, in 1928, the parish of Saint John of God was founded under the patronage of Saint Michael Parish. Fr. Furtado would serve that parish for the rest of his life.

Upon completion of the Church, Fr. Ferraz’s dream for a parish school began. His main concern was that of providing a Catholic education for his young parishioners. His vision and leadership led him to purchase the Fulton Street School from the City of Fall River in 1930. He employed the assistance of the Holy Union Sisters and the first classes began on September 5, 1930.
In 1934, the Lindsey St. School (the current site of Michael’s Provisions) was donated to the parish and became our “second” school building.

On December 9, 1936, Fr. Ferraz was named a Monsignor by Pope Pius XI and for many years served as a diocesan consultor and defender of the bond at the Diocesan Marriage Tribunal. Msgr. Ferraz continued to work tirelessly for our parish and school. Much of his pastorate here was plagued by financial hardship but he always showed great dedication to the poor. Parishioners tell the story of how Msgr. Ferraz’s mother and sisters would prepare sandwiches for the poor, especially the mill workers, and they would distribute them at the door of the rectory. Failing health began to restrict his abilities to function as he once did. Nonetheless, Msgr. Ferraz could still be found each day walking to each of the three school buildings.

Msgr. John F. Ferraz died on All Saints Day, November 1, 1944 at the age of 64 while consoling a parishioner in the front office of the rectory. His funeral Mass was celebrated by Bishop Cassidy here in our Church and he is buried in a family plot at Saint Patrick Cemetery, Fall River.

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