Pancho was such a wonderful person with such a kind heart. Our hearts ache at the idea of not seeing him anymore. His sweet smile, his always asking about my kids, if they weren’t with me at the restaurant. He was more than a friend, he and the people at Pancho’s are family. Our hearts and prayers go out to all of you.
When I started dating my late husband, Ted Wheeler, back in 1980, one of our very first dates was to Pancho’s Mexican Restaurant. He told me he had been going there since he was 16 years old and that this place would be part of our lives. Ted was right. We soon got married and started a family. After our first child was born, on the way home from the hospital, we stopped for Pancho’s. It became a pattern when we had our next two babies. Our children had the perfect introduction to this world, a trip to Pancho’s on the way home from the hospital. With my second child, we went on the way to the hospital as well. That would be the first of many visits to Pancho’s.
My children grew up there and Pancho and the gang were always parts of their lives. The friends of my grown children know Pancho as well because when they’d have friends over and the question came up, “What do you want for dinner?....or lunch..., the answer was always the same, “Pancho’s”. We would drive the half hour it takes to get there, not only because of the delicious food, but because it was like driving home for dinner. Getting to see the staff, which doesn’t feel like staff, but family, being able to see Pancho walk through the door and wave and say, “Hi Teresa, how are the kids? , are memories I will always cherish. Pancho (Frank), always took the time to talk to us. I can’t tell you the countless conversations he was kind enough to sit and have, with all of my kids, but especially my son, Kevin.
So much of our life, so many memories have been made there. We used to go sailing on my husband’s Hobicat. We never ended a day of sailing without going to Pancho’s. The two just go together. When I look over my life and think of happy times, laughing a lot, being surrounded by people I care about, I see Pancho’s. That’s what Pancho built. He didn’t just build a restaurant and serve the yummiest food, he built a large, extended family that we all get to be a part of.
We love you Pancho and we miss you so very, very much. Our love and prayers go out to Rosa, Jaime and all of you. We love you so much. We know Ted is excited he is getting Pancho to make him cheese Fritos in heaven now. We love you Pancho.
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