The Rev. Manuel Peter Ferreira, 90, died on Sept. 6, 2020, at Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River, after a period of declining health.
Father Ferreira was ordained as a diocesan priest by Bishop James L. Connolly on April 2, 1960, at St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Fall River.
Born in Provincetown to the late John and Genevieve (Santos) Ferreira on Jan. 24, 1930, he graduated from Provincetown High School and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving aboard the U.S.S. Midway from 1948 to 1951. He then attended St. Mary’s Seminary in Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
He ministered in a number of diocesan parishes: St. Elizabeth’s in Fall River; Our Lady of Mount Carmel, St. John the Baptist, and Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, all in New Bedford; and St. Anthony’s in Taunton.
Father Ferreira served as a notary and advocate for the Diocesan Tribunal. He was a member of the Diocesan Board of Education, and dean of the New Bedford Deanery. He also was Taunton area director of the Catholic Charities Appeal and chaplain of American Legion Post 1 in New Bedford, the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and Prince Henry Society.
Father Manny considered Provincetown his “home away from home,” and often visited with his late cousin Gordon and wife Beverly Ferreira. He enjoyed his Portuguese heritage, good food, good music, a corny joke, a walk among the dunes, and writing homilies and poems. Above all else, he loved his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
He is survived by his sister, Elaine Kathleen Ferreira Cowart, of Myrtle Beach, S.C.; nieces Cindi Cowart Campbell, of Little River, S.C., and Wendy Cowart Morris, of Jupiter, Fla.; nephew Carl Douglas Cowart and spouse Patty, of Huntsville, Ala.; great-nephew Joshua Craig Campbell and son Jonah, of Leland, N.C.; great-niece Lindsay Genevieve Campbell Ashley and spouse Brian, and their sons, Shaw and Lochlan; and by extended family and many friends.
His body will lie in state on Tuesday, Sept. 22, from 4 to 7 p.m., at St. Peter the Apostle Church in Provincetown, where there will be a funeral Mass on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 10:30 a.m. Interment will follow at St. Peter the Apostle Cemetery. Due to Covid-19, space at these services is limited, and face masks are required.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Prince Henry Society Scholarship Foundation, New Bedford Chapter, P.O. Box 6726, New Bedford, MA 02742.
