Ramon Sanchez, the founder and proprietor of Ramon’s Cactus Patch, the oldest restaurant in Ontario, died Wednesday evening at home at age 98, according to his family.

Sanchez on March 30 closed his Mexican restaurant, which he opened in 1938, due to illness. He was suffering from colon cancer. I wrote about that earlier in April.

Services will be private, at Sanchez’ request, and he also told his family he didn’t want an obituary or any fuss. “No fanfare. That was his way,” daughter Claudia said.

That said, I’ll be writing about him anyway. (That’s my way.) His family is fine with that and I’m sure he would be too. In the meantime, farewell to a local institution.