On the eve of our departure in 1959 to Bogotá, Colombia, the Guatemalan government decorated both my father (Órden de San Carlos) and my mother (Órden del Quetzal.  While Ambassadors and Ministers were routinely granted the host nation’s highest medal, it was very rare for a wife to be given a medal as well. My mother had left a deep impression with her tireless work with the diplomatic community in raising funds for a hospital to serve the poor.