Humble Living (cont'd)
DADDY'S HOME
Like the many roles he’s played Luis also
wears several hats when at home with his
family. After growing up in NYC, Luis and his
wife “Angelita” packed up themselves and
their five children and moved to the country. “I use to like hanging out in Vermont when I
was a teenager because I had a couple of
my buddies from the neighborhood that got
scholarships to study up there at a college
and we use to go and hang out and visit.
I made some friends up there and my wife
and I adopted four children and we had one
of our own and we said ‘hey lets make a
move, let’s move to the country.’ And that’s
what we did and we’ve been up there now
going on 17 years.”
Just to rewind a bit, Luis and his beautiful wife went through the devastation of losing their first child, which motivated them to adopt. “It was from all these years of being a community activist working with teenagers and seeing how many kids use to come from broken homes or they were in foster care or group homes you know kids that are teen parents. I lost my first son and right after that I kind of switched gears and we adopted my first son. Then we adopted my daughter then we had our own daughter and then we adopted twins right after that,” he continues, “Its just different, pretty laid back and quite, a lot of fresh air. No stresses of everyday life that you find in the city. I love the city, it’s where I grew up but I tell you anytime I have the opportunity to get out I take it. The city is not the easiest place to raise a kid. And hey raising 5 kids in an apartment isn’t easy that’s the other thing.”
Luis speaks from the heart and his own
experiences growing up in the city that
never sleeps. But from early on he lived in
the present and took advantage of life. If he
would have never become the actor that he
is today with a Screen Actors Guild Award
(2001), Imagen Award (2003) 
and two FFCC
Awards (1998 & 2000) under his belt, Luis
Guzman would still be known for something. “I don’t live beyond my means. My mom
and dad raised me with some kind of values
and I didn’t really get it until 15 years after I
moved out of their house and I was like ‘oh
okay this is what mami and papi were trying
to teach me.’ I try not to complicate my life
with too many things. Family is important to
me. I’m constantly thinking about what kind
of world we’re leaving our children. I want
to make a difference. I want my children to
make a difference. I do my own things like I
cook, do laundry (laughs) you know things
like that. And this life of quote unquote movie
star people hasn’t affected me that way.
I don’t spoil my children. I teach them the
value of earning.”
The humble Puerto Rico born husband/father/actor knows what it takes to earn and
evolve from a boy to a man. He does it with
grace and a respect that can open anyone’s
eyes to the possibility and positive effects
that change can bring. I speak of the change
that jiggles in your pockets and the changes
one makes to ensure living life to the fullest.
Luis has welcomed both into his existence
and molded it to fit this life the way he sees
it best. Spending time with his family in their
Vermont home is definitely on the top of his
list, “We got a spread [in Vermont] of a couple
hundred acres so [the kids] go on their bikes
and like I said there’s a lot of fresh air and
they go snow boarding, biking, swimming. I
think where I am I’ve had the opportunity to
provide my children with a real childhood - something that I had as a kid. Unfortunately nowadays in the city a lot of that is lost. All of
a sudden you find yourself 4 or 5 years old in survival mode and I’ve seen that too many
times.”
With a secure nest egg and promising future Luis Guzman keeps busy in his simple
life. “I have a movie that comes out in February that’s called The Cleaner with Samuel L.
Jackson and Ed Harris. And I’m about to go start working on a film with Jim Carrey out in
California,” Luis concludes, “Well you know what, with these kids, somebody gotta pay for
their college.”
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ULM Podcast