Helen Costa Medeiros

Helen Costa (Ferraz) Medeiros, 91, entered into eternal rest on March 12, 2018 surrounded by her loving family. Born in Bristol, RI she was the daughter of the late Ernesto and Almerinda Costa. She moved to Sao Miguel in the Azores at the age of 4 and was raised in Freguesia Do Agua De Pau. Upon returning to the U.S., she met and married her husband, the late Joseph DaMota Medeiros, in Fall River, MA, where they were married for 41 years. Besides raising their children, they were the owners of several properties and were proprietors of Family Soft Ice Cream on Broadway in Fall River. She was also a seamstress for many years at various knitting mills across the city. Later, she was a lunch server at local public elementary schools. A caring, generous, and very religious person, she was a long time parishioner of Santo Christo Church. Matriarch to not only her own family, but due to the early death of her sister, helped raised her 2 nieces and nephew. She also extended her graciousness to a large extended family here and abroad. She will be greatly missed by all those whose lives she touched.

Besides her husband, she was predeceased in death by her sister Almerinda Costa Martins of the Azores. Survivors include her loving children, Michael J. Medeiros and his wife Joann (Szala) of Dartmouth, Paul E. Medeiros and his wife Dawn (Dagwan), Linda M. Keyes and her fiancé Brian Downing, and Jeffrey F. Medeiros, all of Fall River and grandchildren, Jennifer Whittaker, Timothy Medeiros and his wife Shannon, Amy Medeiros, Rachel and Daniel Keyes, and Gianna and Lauryn Medeiros. She was the aunt to Mary Viveiros, Joe Martins and Mary Lou Martins. She was also the Godmother to many.

Her funeral will be held Saturday at 8:30 AM from the Auclair Funeral Home, 690 So. Main St., Fall River, with a funeral mass at Santo Christo Church, Fall River at 9:45 AM. Interment, Notre Dame Cemetery.

Visitation Friday from 4:00 to 8:00 PM. Large parking area & barrier-free entrance at the rear of funeral home.

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