Carmen Calisto Ponce (born 28 February 1942) is the wife of former Ecuadorian President

Rodrigo Borja Cevallos Rodrigo Borja Cevallos (born 19 June 1935) is an Ecuadorian politician who was President of Ecuador from 10 August 1988 to 10 August 1992. He is also a descendant of the House of Borgia. Life Borja was born in Quito, the capital of Ecuador. ...

and is thus the 36th

First Lady of Ecuador First ladies and gentlemen of Ecuador are the wives and husbands of the presidents of Ecuador. There has been only one First Gentleman, first gentleman of Ecuador to date, Eduardo Peña Triviño, the husband of former acting president Rosalía Ar ...

, a position she held from 10 August 1988 to 9 August 1992.

Biography

Carmen Calisto Ponce was born in

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...

on 28 February 1942 the eldest daughter of Gonzalo Calisto Enríquez and María Ponce Martínez, making her a descendant of the Counts of Selva Florida through her mother. When Calisto's mother died in her youth, she took on the responsibility of looking after her younger siblings.

Marriage and children

On 16 December 1966, in the city of

, Calisto married

, at that time Jurist Commission that then President

Clemente Yerovi Clemente Yerovi Indaburu (10 August 1904 – 19 July 1981) was a politician and the interim President (government title), president of Ecuador from 30 March 1966, to 16 November 1966. Yerovi was born in Barcelona, Spain, where his parents C ...

assembled to draft a new constitution. They had four children: *Gabriela Borja Calisto *María del Carmen Borja Calisto *Rodrigo Borja Calisto *Verónica Borja Calisto

First Lady of Ecuador

, Calisto was president of the National Institute of Children and Families (INNFA), hostess of

Carondelet Palace Carondelet Palace ( es, Palacio de Carondelet) is the seat of government of the Republic of Ecuador, located in Quito. Access is by the public space known as Independence Square or Plaza Grande (colloquial name), around which are also the Arch ...

, and companion to her husband to various formal functions at the national and international level. In a state visit to

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, the couple were received by King

Juan Carlos Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

and

Queen Sofía Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

at the

Palace of Zarzuela The Zarzuela Palace ( es, Palacio de la Zarzuela ) is the residence and working offices of the reigning monarch of Spain (King Felipe VI), although the official residence of the Spanish royal family is the Royal Palace of Madrid. The Zarzuela Pal ...

and

Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid ( es, Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the ...

and Calisto was made a Grand Dame of

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Order of Isabella the Catholic ( es, Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order and honor granted to persons and institutions in recognition of extraordinary services to the homeland or the promotion of international relations a ...

Awards

, Grand Cross. Granted by

Juan Carlos I of Spain Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Nov ...

on 8 September 1989.

Citations

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Calisto, Carmen Living people 1942 births First Ladies of Ecuador Dames Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic People from Quito 21st-century Ecuadorian women politicians 21st-century Ecuadorian politicians