John B. DeValles (1879–1920) was a Catholic priest who founded the first Portuguese parochial school at Espirito Santo Church in Fall River, Massachusetts, and later served with distinction as a U.S. Army chaplain during World War I.
Accounts of his ministry to both Allied and German soldiers were published, and he received honors from both the French and United States government before his death in 1920 of complications from his wartime wounds.
[1] DeValles served 18 months in World War I and often entered No-Man's Land to search for wounded and dying Allied and German soldiers.
[2] Soldiers, clergy, and citizens attended and General Clarence Ransom Edwards placed the Distinguished Service Cross on DeValles' chest as the medal had not arrived from Washington before his death.
The Massachusetts National Guard, a cornerstone of the 26th Division, presented the school with a bronze relief sculpture of DeValles, and the city with the three medals he had been awarded.