St. Michael Parish in Canfield was founded in 1960, when Bishop Emmet Walsh established it as a mission to serve Catholics in the area. Until then, Catholics in Canfield attended Mass at St. Charles in Boardman. During this time, Masses were held at the American Legion Hall, but the village was growing rapidly, and the community was granted parish status in 1962. The community moved to Canfield Elementary School for Mass while their new worship space was being constructed.

Bishop Walsh dedicated the new church on October 4, 1964. In the ensuing decades, parish population—and thus ministries and programs—experienced great growth. The groundbreaking for the new St. Michael’s parish center occurred on March 2, 1980, opening space for parish offices and adult and youth faith formation. The 1980s saw parishioners make an increased effort to engage in social justice and ministries to the poor, which was enhanced through a tithing program where 10 percent of the parish’s Sunday collections were distributed to local charities.

Through the late 1990s and early 2000s, the sanctuary received renovations and various improvements, and a new family life center was dedicated, which continues to serve the parish and community.

Today, St. Michael Parish offers fitness programs to parishioners at its family life center gymnasium. It also has a Garden Guild, an active Men’s Club, a Knights of Columbus, and various ministries dedicated to serving those in need, including a soup kitchen volunteer group and a Thanksgiving food collection.

The parish’s perpetual Mass fund, the Sacred Heart Society, provides an avenue for any intercessory prayer to be recognized by the faith community. The parish’s dedication to Saint Michael the Archangel reflects the community’s dedication to social justice and their faith in his powerful intercession.

Description from The March of the Eucharist, 2nd edition (2025) published by The Catholic Echo