Lupita, the selfless and loving mother of the series My adorable little ones, He is a character who has given smiles and happiness to several Ecuadorian generations. Amparo Guillenthe actress behind this role that captivated an entire country, lives a very different reality than Lupita.
After 48 years of working on stage and in recording studios, the Ecuadorian is going through a critical economic situation. She does not want the public that has followed her to see her with pity. She wants to work, find a new opportunity to share her knowledge, or to return to her habitat, the theater. She wants to hear the applause at the end of a play. She wants to feel that the accolades she has received throughout her career have not been in vain.
Affected by type 2 diabetes and without a fixed income, Amparo aspires to the government or municipal authorities showing up. Not to help only her, but to attend to an entire artistic guild that faces the crisis and the forgetting of her when she enters the third age. “That we be given a bonus, the one that was offered in a pandemic and never came into our hands, that a citadel be created so that all the artists who are already old have a place to live and die with dignity,” emphasizes the 68-year-old artist .
With the faithful company of ‘la chamberita’ or girl Sofi, a dog that she rescued from the street a year ago, Amparo talks with this newspaper about her present, far from the lights and the cameras.
How is your current situation?
I believe that 60% or 70% of what is the guild of Ecuadorian artists, call themselves sculptors, painters, actors, singers, dancers, circus performers, all of us who make art are in a very critical situation. The pandemic brought economic devastation, we couldn’t work. Income of money became extremely difficult, there was no income. Apart from that, yes, I have a disease that is quite severe, I am a type 2 diabetic, I have a problem that diabetes brings called neuropathy, it consists in that I hardly feel my toes or my fingers . Diabetes is a silent disease, but it is damaging the kidneys, the heart. So if you don’t have proper care, a proper diet, if you don’t maintain constant medication, the complications are serious.
Diabetes keeps her in type 2, how have you managed to control it in the midst of all this crisis that mentions paying for some treatment?
God said that he will send us angels and among them I found a doctor. When I injected myself with insulin twice a day, I found a doctor who never charged for his consultation but who cared about me, I had up to 600 sugar. If God has not allowed me to go into a diabetic coma, it must be for something, because I still have a mission on this earth. So, the doctor began to treat me and to this day I stopped taking insulin and live with controlled diabetes, despite the fact that sometimes it rises due to emotional situations, stress.
Do you have emotional diabetes?
Yes. I am going through difficult situations, which I have never wanted to be known.
What are those difficult situations that you are currently going through, Amparo?
Lack of work.
How long have you been out of work, Amparo?
This is how I work, work, a year and a half ago. Then the little that can be saved no longer exists.
When was the last time you had a stable job that allowed you to have a secure income?
Many years ago. The last one was the series (My lovely little ones) that we did through Facebook, a season of eight chapters and that allowed me to have an amount of money, at least I speak for myself, to survive. I don’t have my own house, I don’t have a car, my feet don’t allow me to walk very fast.
Do you currently live in a rented house or apartment?
Yes, in an apartment.
How much rent do you have to pay?
$170 per month.
Are you behind on rent?
Yes, I am two months behind and the lady (owner of the property) is a very good person, but we all have needs and that also means paying and I honestly have not been able to do it and I am going to have to vacate the house and see what will happen with my life. I have 15 more days for God to bless me and tell me where I should go.
The ‘Adorable Entenados’ return with a new series on YouTube on October 5
A constant struggle of the actors has been the fight for their rights, affiliation to social security and other benefits, do you receive any help from any authority or entity?
No. What I do want to comment on is that the Deputy Minister of Culture and Heritage is calling me, I haven’t spoken to her yet, one of the Deputy Minister’s advisers called me, but I don’t know what we’re going to talk about, I’m working on it. I have also received a call a long time ago from a person who is close to President Guillermo Lasso, but nothing has materialized.
What I want is for a small citadel to be created for those of us who are older, the oldest actors or actresses or artists of all kinds so that we have a little house, so that we have a place to live and die with dignity.
In the event that there is some type of work proposal, would you be willing to join some type of government entity to work, from your area?
I run where there is one, I don’t finish talking because I’m already there. I don’t want them to feel sorry for me, sorry, no, no, my wish is to be able to work and support myself as I have always supported myself.
What kind of urgent help do you need?
My doctor Gustavo Galio helps me with the medicines, he does not charge me, he is an angel.
Amparo is the mother of two children, both of whom live outside the country, and of them she has three treasures, her grandchildren Mauricio Navarro, Roberto and Sebastián Ávila.
The actress is an American resident, since she was 17 years old. Her mother was an American citizen, she says. “I have never wanted to live outside the country, I am very Guayaquilian,” she says. “That all the artists help us, that we can have a little house,” she adds with a broken voice. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
