Ramona Castillo Real may not have earned a great deal of money in her lifetime, but she was the richest lady in the world, according to her third eldest son Anthony (Tony) Real.

"Whatever she had, she cherished and enjoyed," he said. "She would take people in to help them even when she had nothing. I am proud to be her son."

Certainly at the top of Ramona Castillo Real's list of achievements is her large and loving family, which includes six children, 20 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

The eldest daughter of migrant farm workers, Ramona was born Oct. 16, 1920, in the farmlands of Cucamonga. Growing up in Pala, she attended Bonsall School through the eighth grade until she left school to be the primary caretaker of her siblings, Virginia Murillo and Genero, Frank and Tony Castillo, who have all preceded her in death.

"She was the last one to hang around," said her son Charlie Real. "She wanted everyone to go first to take care of them."

Though not of American Indian descent herself, Ramona was raised on the Indian reservation where as a mother of six, she sold her delicious homemade cooking at a booth, or ramada, during fiestas. "Before the casinos, they would have softball and baseball games in Pala with Indian dancers and they would make little food stands out of brush," said Tony. "My mom would sell tacos, burritos, menudo and soda at the pow-wows. She was the best cook. Everybody thinks that (about their mother) but she really was."

Ramona called her booth Ramona's Ramada Inn, but the rest of the world just called her the Fiesta Lady. The family said she could be anywhere in North County and someone would recognize her and stop her to ask whether she was the Fiesta Lady. "She was the best tortilla maker in the world, too." said Tony. "And her empanadas were amazing."

Son Charlie remembers his mother's famous chiles.

"She made the best chiles," he said. "They would call it hot sauce, but we called it homemade chiles. She used the hottest ones and canned them. I remember my brother-in-law said he liked hot chiles and he ate half the jar once. He turned bright purple and had tears coming out of his eyes. You know the chiles are the best when your nose starts to drip and your eyes water."

She also loved music, especially Mexican music and anything with an accordion.

"We are all musicians," said Charlie, who is a bass and guitar player in local bands with his siblings, Richard, James, Anthony, Vera and George. "At grandma's house, we built a stage and had a PA system for family gatherings and reunions."

Easter time was her favorite time of the year, added Tony.

"Even when the kids were already big, she would insist on having an Easter egg hunt. She'd hard-boil the eggs, color them and hide them under the big trees and give the kid who found the most a dollar or two," Tony said.

The entire family still remembers those early days spent at her little house on the reservation as some of the greatest of their lives. Her daughter Vera wrote exactly that in her letter to the Pala Indian Tribe requesting them to honor their mother's dying wish to be buried on the Indian lands.

The tribe has granted permission for her to be buried in the Pala resident cemetery near the Mission San Antonio de Pala. "They call it Boot Hill," said Charlie. "There are old, gray wooden crosses and the residents still dig the hole by hand. Mom will be laid to rest in the traditional way and it's a nice view from there."

Mass will be held for Ramona Castillo Real at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 31, at the Mission San Antonio de Pala in Pala. The public is welcome to attend.

- Contact staff writer Ruth Marvin Webster at (760) 740-3527 or rwebster@nctimes.com.