Family Affair Honduran Ambassadorís Wife Balances Children, Charity, Husbandís Political Run by Gail Scott From the outside, this official embassy residence of Honduras looks like all the other comfortable homes in the Spring Hill subdivision just over the District line on Massachusetts Avenue. Only the Honduran flag gives it away. But once inside, the home of Honduran Ambassador Mario Canahuati, his wife Sandra and their two youngest boys seems thousands of miles away from the Washington area. A visit here is like taking a quick trip to their Central American country. Non-stop activity, an unending parade of extended family members, platters of food and constant hugs fill this home with Latin love. When I arrived to interview Sandra Canahuati, the house was quiet, but once the boys burst through the door from their school day at St. Albans, it quickly became a family discussion, not an interview. No one needed to tell me that this was a close-knit family. Even the grueling demands of this top diplomatic post couldnít make this home unfriendly to family life. Here, 14-year-old Mario Alberto and 12-year-old Alejandro took turns sitting on their motherís chair with their arms around her, almost as if they wer e guarding her from an intruding reporter. The intensity of their watch, with such big black eyes and handsome faces, was only broken when they hopped up and changed places. I asked the questions and Sandra and her boys raced to answer, often finishing each otherís sentences. Then everyone laughed, a lot. The boys know the stories by heart: how their parents fell in love, married young in a huge church wedding, and had four children while Sandra, pregnant, continued to study law. Before becoming the Honduran ambassador to Washington, Mario and Sandra worked in his familyís textile business. She still works there, often designing garments for Victoriaís Secret, Vanity Fair and Lily of France. Since 1997, the couple has also been helping poor children from Honduras go to school with their nonprofit foundation, Mhotivo. And now a new chapter is unfolding: Mario may be running for vice president of Honduras. With elections in February, three days after the coupleís silver wedding anniversary, the excitement is mounting. The boys wonder if they will be finishing the next school year at St. Albans or returning home to Honduras. Eighth-grader Mario is lobbying hard to stay behind in Washington with his classmates. Their parents leave town early for Christmas in Honduras and then for political primaries in January, not knowing when they will see their Washington colleagues and friends again. If Porfirio Lobo Sosa, the president of the Congress and the National Party leader, runs for Honduran president, he wants Mario Canahuati at his side. "Six months ago when the idea of the vice presidency was mentioned, I loved it, but then it came as a surprise with a phone call the other night at 3 in the morning," the 42-year-old Sandra said. "They were calling Mario to run and he said yes. By 6 a.m., he was already on his way to Miami en route to HondurasÖ. I called his mother and uncle, and then friends started calling me when they heard it on the radio. My friends are very happy," Sandra explained. "They want me to come back." When asked if she thinks her 53-year-old husband will be victorious in the primaries and the election, the answer was easy for this devoted Catholic mother of four. "If God wants him to be vice president, he will open the door," she said. After the phone calls, "the next thing I did was open the Bible Ö we believe in hierarchy. Jesus Christ is the leader of our house. "But," she admitted, "I have a conflict of emotions. My husband and I love to serve our people, and we love what we are doing here." If Mario is not successful in the primaries and in the election, he will be back in Washington as his countryís ambassador. For this diplomatic family, the New Year will certainly be full of surprises, but for now, everyone has decided they are famished, so the interview takes a break and in come the platters. One glance at the food reveals this is not Central American fare. Sandra, who was born in Colombia, is three-quarters Lebanese and one-quarter Italian. The ambassador is three-quarters Palestinian and one-quarter Greek. He was born and reared in Honduras but his mother was born in Lebanon. It seemed that evening was Middle Eastern night in the Canahuati household as the boys were digging into "kibbes" and "zamusec" (meat patties and spinach pastries) just like American families might devour a hot pizza. Waldina, who has been with the Canahuatis for more than 20 years as a nanny and is a "second mother to the children," checked to see if everyone had what they needed. The door opened again and two old family friends came in: CNNís Central American expert Jocova Golstein and his wife Frances. Everyone jumped up and began hugging each other. The couple went to the kitchen to fix their plates before retiring to the television room to watch CNN. We returned to our group interview. As much as the Canahuatis love Washington, the entire family misses the sound of the ocean and their beloved water sports back home. With beach houses in Honduras and Miami, they have perfected their water skiing, scuba diving and fishing. "My husband is an expert fisherman," Sandra noted. "Dad got a yellow fin tuna that weighed 141 lbs. and a dolphin that weighed 53," bragged the younger Mario. "But the blue marlin was best at 232. I got one at 145 lbs!" In the winter here, the family loves to ski, sometimes in New England and often close by at White Tail in Pennsylvania. "The first time we went skiing together," recounted Sandra, "I saw the hill and said, ëNo way.í" But, with her husband skiing backward in front of her, Sandra learned to love the sport. In Washington, she keeps in shape with spinning classes at Tenley Sport and Health Club and frequent sessions of Bikram yoga. Often the whole family takes off on local bike paths for a long weekend ride. Sandraís friends marvel at her green thumb and artwork. "When she was young, Mom made flower arrangements with her mom," said Alejandro. Mario then made sure that Mom also got credit for all of the elaborate table decorations she designs each year for the Honduran National Day celebrations. The front door flew open again and in came two hungry schoolmates of Marioís. The welcome was extraordinary. The three boys stood with their arms around each otherís shoulders, grinning. "These are two of my friends who came home to Honduras with me last summer. We had 12 [friends]. It was Momís idea, this ëfriendship trip.í They took Spanish classes and saw banana plantations, Maya ruins and had great fun on the beach." "We converted the pool house into one huge bedroom," explained Sandra. "And now the parents want to come." Mario chimed in, "And some of my other friends." "If you want to have a pleasant family, you have to be an understanding, empathic and loving parent," said Mario. "And if you want to have a happy marriage, you need to generate positive energy Ö plus, if you want to have more freedom in your life, you need to be a more responsible, helpful, contributing individual. This is the way Sandra and I live our lives, with our family always beside us. We try to cherish every second God gives us." When asked how she and her husband met, the boys leaned forward to hear their parentsí romantic love story one more time. "I was only 13 years old when we first saw each other," Sandra said. "He swears that the moment he saw me he said to himself, ëI will marry heróI want to be with her for the rest of my life. I thought the same." Four years later when she was 17 and he was 28, they met again at a family dinner. "I was ready to go off to study medicine. My father had already sent the tuition to Montreux, Switzerland," she recalled. When Mario left that night, he asked her what would happen if he called her sometime, leaving Sandra wondering what he meant. In the meantime, she dug in for her final exams in Colombia, thinking she was soon off to study medicine in Europe. "Then one day I get a call and he says, ëI am going to ask you only one question and you have only three minutes to answer,í" she said. "Then he asked, ëDo you want to marry me?í My goals, medical school and everything else were flashing by me. My mother was sitting in front of me and looking at me, wondering what was going on. Then, I said, ëYes!í" Her new husband had already studied industrial engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology and manufacturing in Milan. After the wedding, they both worked in the family business of manufacturing intimate apparel for both men and women. Over the years as their childrenófirst Juan Carlos, now 24 and working in Honduras, Stephanie, now 21 and finishing up at American Unive rsity and the two younger boysógrew up, everyone had a chance to work in one of the factories during the summers. "Itís fun," said Mario. With their financial success, Sandra and her husband realized they wanted to give back to the Honduran people, especially the children. In 1997, they created a nonprofit foundation to help more Honduran children receive a good education early in their lives. Calling it Mhotivo to promote "more Hondurans having identity, values and pride," this organization sees children as the "change agents" in their families and communities. Not only does the foundation help low-income children go to school instead of to work, Mhotivo is designed to develop leadership skills, entrepreneurial spirit and volunteerism. Free courses are also offered to parents in English, computers and gardening so that parents can learn along with their children. "The whole family is involved," said Sandra. "And this is so important considering that 42 percent of our population is under 14 and 69 percent of our children donít have the option to go to school, causing all sorts of problems when they grow up." Sandra recounted one mother who said to her child, "Right now, I will carry you on my back but later you will carry me in a car." The Canahuatis hope that in the future, Mhotivo can help thousands of Hondurans out of poverty and into financial independence. "I used to see hungry children on the streets, just walking along," Sandra said. "Iíd stop the car and take them to my house and give them food. My heart was broken Ö I cried all the time. "Honduras is a small but beautiful country," she continued. "Our major treasure is our people, so innocent, so real and so authentic. I always think about the people. Solid education is the only way to succeedÖ. All is worth it when you see the light of curiosity in these childrenís faces." The next Diplomatic Spouses column will feature Ellen Sofie Vollebaek, wife of the Norwegian ambassador. Gail Scott is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.