Ricardo Sanchez
July 10, 1951 — February 2, 2022
Ricardo Q. Sanchez passed away on February 2, 2022 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Born to Celso Sanchez and Juaquina Quintana Sanchez in El Paso, Texas on July 10, 1951, Ricardo was the second of their four children. After graduating from university, he worked as a schoolteacher in The Netherlands then traveled throughout Europe in what he would later describe as some of his happiest me...
Ricardo Q. Sanchez passed away on February 2, 2022 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Born to Celso Sanchez and Juaquina Quintana Sanchez in El Paso, Texas on July 10, 1951, Ricardo was the second of their four children. After graduating from university, he worked as a schoolteacher in The Netherlands then traveled throughout Europe in what he would later describe as some of his happiest memories. Returning to the United States, he resumed teaching in Washington, DC and became an active member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Always an archivist, he documented the AIDS crisis that decimated the community he had come to be such a part of and this period inspired in him a lifelong commitment to advocacy and political involvement. As a young man, Ricardo developed substance abuse problems and got sober in the DC Gay Alcoholics Anonymous groups during the late 1980's. He'd attend AA meetings for the remainder of his life, finding support, friendship, and encouragement through them. He moved "home" to San Diego, CA in the late 1990's, taking on additional education positions as well as work for the US Census Bureau. During the last twenty years of his life, he moved to various locations across the southwest United States including Palm Springs, California, Tucson, Arizona, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and finally Las Cruces, New Mexico. He was very close with his mother Juaquina, who passed away in 2015. After leaving San Diego for the final time, he moved close...
Ricardo Q. Sanchez passed away on February 2, 2022 in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Born to Celso Sanchez and Juaquina Quintana Sanchez in El Paso, Texas on July 10, 1951, Ricardo was the second of their four children. After graduating from university, he worked as a schoolteacher in The Netherlands then traveled throughout Europe in what he would later describe as some of his happiest memories. Returning to the United States, he resumed teaching in Washington, DC and became an active member of the LGBTQIA+ community. Always an archivist, he documented the AIDS crisis that decimated the community he had come to be such a part of and this period inspired in him a lifelong commitment to advocacy and political involvement. As a young man, Ricardo developed substance abuse problems and got sober in the DC Gay Alcoholics Anonymous groups during the late 1980's. He'd attend AA meetings for the remainder of his life, finding support, friendship, and encouragement through them. He moved "home" to San Diego, CA in the late 1990's, taking on additional education positions as well as work for the US Census Bureau. During the last twenty years of his life, he moved to various locations across the southwest United States including Palm Springs, California, Tucson, Arizona, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and finally Las Cruces, New Mexico. He was very close with his mother Juaquina, who passed away in 2015. After leaving San Diego for the final time, he moved closer to his aunt Clara Quintana Aguilera, who was living in Lordsburg, New Mexico. He was her caretaker through the last years of her life. She passed away in spring 2021 at the age of 95. His sister, Rozanna Quintana, passed away on December 9, 2021, just one day shy of her 60th birthday. Ricardo was fascinated by his family history and kept meticulous records of his Native American and Mexican heritages. He never married and had no children, instead focusing on his relationships with his nieces and nephews. He was a strong personality who lived a varied life and was always there for his loved ones. Ricardo Q. Sanchez is survived by his older brother Ruben Q. Sanchez, his younger brother Robert Sanchez, his nephews David Sanchez and Andrew Reutzel, as well as his nieces Jessica Sanchez Warman and Abby Quintana. Close family members Janice Quintana, Patricia Garcia Golding, and Eva Navarro are amongst those mourning this loss. He will be greatly missed.
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