JOHN CORREIA: FROM PLUMBER’S APPRENTICE TO PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
In our previous column, we revisited our 2017 book Azores Around the World, devoted to the Azorean communities of Lisbon, Rio de Janeiro, Hilmar, Quebec, Northern Portugal, São Paulo, Bahia, New England, Ontario, Winnipeg, the Algarve, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay, and Bermuda, through the lens of the Casas dos Açores that existed at the time. The volume was honored with a foreword by the President of the Portuguese Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
In this column, and in the three that will follow, we continue to share the essence of our five books dedicated specifically to the Azorean diaspora: John Correia – From Plumber’s Apprentice to President of the Senate (2019), Transatlantic – Migration in the Azores (2023), Transatlantic II – Azoreanness & Interculturality (2024), and Conversations from the Diaspora – Fifty Azoreans Around the World (2024).
We begin with John Correia—or, more precisely, João Jacinto Faria Correia. Born in the Azorean parish of Arrifes in 1939, he began working at the age of thirteen for the Municipal Water and Sanitation Services of Ponta Delgada, where he progressed from apprentice to master tradesman and eventually to foreman. In 1965, he emigrated to the United States. As a plumber, he worked on naval bases and in hospitals before establishing his own successful plumbing and heating company. At the same time, he immersed himself in the civic life of his adopted community. He became the first Portuguese director and vice president of the East Providence Credit Union and was the co-founder and first president of the Casa dos Açores of the State of Rhode Island.
In 1983, he achieved what no other Portuguese emigrant had accomplished before—or has since accomplished—by being elected to the Rhode Island Senate. Re-elected for four additional terms, he rose first to Vice President and ultimately to President Pro Tempore of the Senate, becoming the third-highest political authority in the State. Over the course of a decade, he championed increases to Rhode Island’s minimum wage, secured American matching funds for the Azores, and became a steadfast advocate for Portuguese identity throughout New England.
His life deserved to become a book—and it did.
John Correia – From Plumber’s Apprentice to President of the Senate was published in 2019 to mark the Azorean senator’s eightieth birthday. It was later followed by a second edition in English, John Correia – From Plumber’s Apprentice to President of the Senate.
The foreword was written by João Bosco Mota Amaral, the first President of the Government of the Azores, who opens with these words:
“Here is a book that was long needed: a work of biographical research on an Azorean emigrant, recounting the twists and turns of his decision to emigrate, the hardships of establishing himself in America, the remarkable effort he devoted to overcoming them, and, finally, the story of his success, bringing honor to his family and also to our Azores, the land of his birth.”
He continues:
“John Correia emerges in these pages—as he does in real life—as the very embodiment of the successful emigrant, a genuine self-made man in the finest American tradition, capable of rising through determination alone, seizing opportunities, embracing risks, perhaps living in a constant state of resolve, until, at the end of the journey, that perseverance yields both fulfillment and well-deserved rewards.”
And he concludes:
“José Andrade’s biography of John Correia is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the saga of Azorean emigrants in America.”
The book is organized into three parts.
The first, From Arrifes to East Providence, unfolds across ten chapters: An Island Cradle, The Errand Boy, Cidália’s Grace, From Canalizador to Plumber, A Parishioner of St. Francis Xavier, A Successful Entrepreneur, The Voice of the Community, The First Portuguese Director, The First President of the Casa dos Açores, and The Governor’s Invitation.
The second, From Candidate to President, comprises eleven chapters: In Bill Castro’s Place, Alongside Claiborne Pell, At the Head of One Hundred Distinguished Figures, The First Emigrant in the Senate, Raising the Minimum Wage, Vice President of the Senate, In Defense of Lajes Air Base, Fighting for Portuguese Identity, President Pro Tempore of the Rhode Island Senate, A President with His Feet on the Ground, and The End of the Portuguese Dynasty.
The third, It Was Worth It, brings the story to its conclusion through seven final chapters: A Return to His Roots, Azorean Pride, The American Dream, Debbie and Richard, Civic Recognition, Political Distinction, and The Commander.
The book is now out of print, and all proceeds from its sale were donated to the Humanitarian Association of the Volunteer Firefighters of Ponta Delgada.
José Andrade is the Regional Director for the Department of Communities for the Government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores