Delia Mendez Powell (portrayed by Mary Steenburgen), George “Pornstache” Mendez‘s mother, reaches out to Daya Diaz upon learning that her son had “impregnated” her, wishing to meet. While Daya intended to ignore the letter, her mother Aleida finds the letter and arranges to meet up with her to discuss the “issue” of her pregnancy. When they do meet up, Delia expresses her desire to adopt the child to make up for the guilt she feels about the pain and mental stress her son has caused the family.
To vouch for her competency as a parent in light of Pornstache‘s actions, she explains that she has two other successful sons, one’s a dentist and the other an art historian, which Aleida interprets as a “sadist, a dentist, and a homo . . . two sadists and a homo.” This, however, is not enough for Aleida. She requests a monthly stipend to help “relieve” the stress, which Delia graciously agrees to.
When Delia finally meets with Daya, she apologizes for her son’s behavior and takes responsibility for George’s behavior. However, she is surprised to learn that Daya is more than willing to let Delia adopt her child, and she urges Daya to take some time to think before promising her child to a woman she just met. Delia expresses her desire to build a relationship with her so that when she has the baby, she can continue to write to her to let her know how her child is doing.
Once Daya finds out about her mother’s scam, however, she tells Delia the whole truth and profusely apologizes to her, stating that she cannot let her adopt a child that is not her son’s. When Delia goes to visit her son in prison to deliver the heartbreaking news, she discovers that the only thing keeping George alive is the thought of getting out of prison and spending the rest of his life with Daya and their child, and so she allows him to maintain his delusional fantasy, despite the fact that he knows the truth about her child.
In light of the recent revelation, Delia decides that she still wants to adopt Daya’s child because she has come to know her as a sweet, honest girl. Seeing as Daya wanted a successful and fulfilling life for her child, sending the baby to live with Delia in an upper-middle-class home in Greenwich, CT seems to be everything she could have ever wanted in order to “give her the best life possible.”
While Delia has begun preparation for her newest child and has been looking forward to her “do-over,” Aleida calls her after the birth of Daya’s baby, claiming that the baby, a boy (really a girl), was stillborn, as the cord was wrapped around his neck. While Delia doesn’t know any better, she hangs up the phone, heartbroken.
Seeing as Aleida severs ties with Delia at the end of season three, it is safe to assume that she will not return for season four – that is unless by some stroke of luck she adopts Daya’s child through the foster care system.
Literary Litchfield 