Imagine receiving a text from your grandma inviting you to Thanksgiving dinner. Now, that doesn't sound odd at all, right? Now, imagine the "grandma" who sent you a text isn't actually your grandma and she, nevertheless, insists on you coming to dinner. Well, that's the heartwarming story of Wanda Dench and Jamal Hinton, who met after a mistaken text brought them together. They will now celebrate their ninth-year Thanksgiving tradition together while Wanda battles breast cancer.
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"Excited to announce that I'm hosting Thanksgiving this year for Wanda and I!" Jamal Hinton announced in an Instagram post. "Looking forward to a day filled with good food, great company, and lasting memories. Year 9 coming soon!" It's an understatement to say that Jamal's followers were ecstatic to learn about their tradition continuing.
This year is extra special as Wanda Dench, in a message shared through Hinton's Instagram, announced she had been diagnosed with breast cancer. "In 2022 I turned 65 years old and I thought I would have my last mammogram and not have to think about it again. But I was wrong," Dench wrote. "Earlier this year I came down with bronchitis and had a CT scan to check out my lungs. That's when a mass in my breast was detected and they suggested I get a mammogram and that verified I had breast cancer."
Dench has been going through therapy. However, she remains positive and encourages others to get their checkups and live life.
A Thanksgiving Tradition
In 2016, Jamal Hinton was minding his own when he received a strange message from an unknown number. "Thanksgiving dinner is at my house on Nov. 24 at 3:00pm," read the message. "Let me know if you're coming. Hope to see you all. Of course that includes Amanda & Justin."
Hinton didn't know Amanda or Justin. In fact, he didn't know who "grandma" was. That's why he answered back, not knowing who was he speaking to. After they exchanged selfies, they soon found that, yes, they didn't know each other. However, that didn't stop Jamal Hinton from asking Wanda Dench if he could join her anyway.
"Of course you can," answered Dench. "That's what grandma's do... feed everyone." The rest, as they say, is history. Jamal Hinton and Wanda Dench then began a Thanksgiving tradition of having dinner together, and 2024 marks the ninth year they have had the chance to share the table and slice the turkey together.
Their story quickly became viral and many were moved by how their friendship came to be. In 2021, a Netflix film named "The Thanksgiving Text" was announced. They both issued a joint statement at the time.
"We hope it inspires more people to reach out and make connections that they wouldn't ordinarily make," they said in the statement. "We are so blessed to find a genuine friendship brought together by God from a mistaken text message."
