The Fall River Feast: Behind the Malasadas and the Fun
It was a festive and successful weekend in Fall River for the 2021 St. Michael's Feast.
Led by Father Jay Mello of the St. Michael's Parish and his team of volunteers, the feast went off without a problem and helped Fall River get back to a normal way of celebrating. The feast began on Friday, July 16 and finished on Sunday evening. The festa brought crowds of people from all over who came to eat and have a good time.
Entertainment and performances took place throughout the weekend that even included a set from international pop sensation, the "Portuguese Superman" himself, Mark Dennis, who kindly signed autographs after his set.
Piping hot malasadas, freshly dressed with sugar, were purchased all day and all night as the volunteers worked feverishly behind the scenes to keep the feast-goers satisfied. The aroma of bifana, cacoila and linguica sandwiches filled the air and of course many bellies.
Father Mello was more than pleased with the outcome of this year's festa.
"I personally think it was one of our best feasts ever for many reasons," Father Mello said. "One, because of how well it all came together and how great everyone worked together and then it was a very family friendly event. One of the highlights for me is bringing all of our parish traditions to the next generation. Seeing all of the families and children there really fills my heart with great joy."
Throughout the weekend, Father Mello spent his time amongst his parishioners, enjoying some delicious Portuguese cuisine and documenting the hard work that went on behind the scenes.
This is his story through his photographs: