Born in 1929 in Tampa, Florida, Hope Portocarrero was the daughter of Dr. Nestor Portocarrero Gross and Blanca DeBayle Sacasa de Portocarrero. She had one brother, Nestor. She was of Spanish, French and Nicaraguan descent. Her grandfather was Dr. Luis Henri DeBayle Pallais, and married to Casimira Sacasa Sacasa. He was a good friend of Rubén Darío. Her maternal great-grandfather was Roberto Sacasa Sarria, former President of Nicaragua. The DeBayles and Portocarreros were among Nicaragua's wealthiest families. She spoke fluent English, Italian, Spanish, and French and had an appreciation for art and culture. After 1943, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she often spent time with her cousin Lillian Sevilla-Sacasa. She attended Barnard College of Columbia University and was in the class of 1950. Portocarrero spent the summer of 1949 traveling in Europe accompanied by her mother.
Marriage
Portocarrero and her cousin Anastasio Somoza Debayle were married on 10 December 1950 in Managua's Cathedral by Archbishop José Antonio Lezcano. Over 4,000 guests attended the ceremony. The reception was given by her father-in-law, President Anastasio Somoza García, in the luxurious and modern Palacio de Comunicaciones. The couple traveled to South America for their honeymoon. The Somozas had five children: Anastasio, Julio, Carolina, Carla, and Roberto Somoza Portocarrero. Her daughter, Carolina, is married to James Minskoff Sterling, son of New Yorkreal estate developer Henry H. Minskoff and his wife.
First Lady of Nicaragua
When her husband became president of Nicaragua in 1967, Portocarrero became the First Lady. She was covered in the media for her fashionable wardrobe. During her husband's time in office, she served as a hostess for many state visits, among them U.S. President Richard Nixon and Japanese EmperorHirohito. Somoza was also president of the Junta Nacional de Asistencia y Previsión Social. She created the National Cultural Center, the General Archives of the National Library, National Conservatory of Music, National School of Fine Arts, National Museum, and Plurar Gallery. Her biggest legacies were the construction of Teatro Nacional Rubén Darío, the Children's Hospital, a clinic for Nicaraguan women, and a Center for Orphans, known as "The Hope".
Final years
Due to continuing marital strife, her husband Anastasio began a relationship with a mistress, Dinorah Sampson. Portocarrero later relocated to London. Since the couple were Catholic, she never divorced Somoza. A year after he died, she married Archie Baldocchi, a wealthy American businessman. She died of cancer in Miami, Florida on 5 October 1991.
