Nydia Quintero Turbay (born 28 August 1932) is the ex-wife of the 25th President of Colombia, Julio César Turbay Ayala, and served as

First Lady of Colombia The First Lady of Colombia (First Lady of the Nation) is the title held by the hostess of the House of Nariño, usually the wife of the President of Colombia, president of Colombia, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the fi ...

from 1978 to 1982 when they were still married. She is the President of ''Fundación Solidaridad por Colombia'', a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

dedicated to improving the condition of impoverished Colombian families through educational and nutritional programs for children, the disabled and the poor.

Personal life

She was born on 28 August 1932 in

Neiva, Huila Neiva () is the capital of the Department of Huila. It is located in the valley of the Magdalena River in south central Colombia with a population of about 357,392 inhabitants. It is one of the most important cities in southern Colombia, mainly ...

to Jorge Quintero Céspedes and Adhalía Turbay Ayala. She is of Lebanese and Basque descent. She attended ''La Presentación'' in Neiva where she lived until the death of her father when she moved to Bogotá to study at the ''Liceo Nacional Femenino Antonia Santos''. On 18 May 1948, against the wishes of her family, she married her maternal uncle Julio César Turbay Ayala in a clandestine wedding in a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

ceremony at Santa Teresita Church in Bogotá. From their marriage they had four children, Julio César, Diana Consuelo, Claudia, and María Victoria. She divorced her husband in 1983 after his term as President of Colombia and hers as First Lady had ended, and remarried the following year in 1984 to

Gustavo Balcázar Monzón Gustavo Balcázar Monzón (born 10 August 1927) is a Colombian lawyer and retired politician. A member of the Colombian Liberal Party, he served as Member of both the Senate of Colombia, Senate and the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia, pre ...

, her marriage to former President Turbay Ayala was finally annulled by the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in 1986.

Honour

* : Dame Grand Cross of the

Royal 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 ...

Boletín Oficial del Estado
(PDF) Accessed 19 December 2019.

References

1932 births Living people People from Huila Department Nydia Colombian people of Lebanese descent Colombian people of Basque descent First ladies of Colombia Colombian philanthropists Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Dames Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic {{Colombia-bio-stub

Personal life

Honour

See also

References