A message sent to a stranger brought a grandmother and a teenager together in 2016. Time has passed, but the unlikely friendship and tradition remain
Wanda Dench and Jamal Hinton crossed paths by chance, between one and an unexpected invitation. A decade later, they continue to celebrate Thanksgiving together, and the unlikely friendship they created continues to inspire.
It all started with a message that Dench wanted to send to one of his six grandchildren, inviting him to Thanksgiving dinner in 2016.
Then 17 years old and a high school senior, Hinton opened the message, suspicious that it shouldn’t have come from his grandmother, who wasn’t particularly tech-savvy. He asked for a photo, and when Dench sent him a selfie – clearly not of his grandmother – he responded with a selfie of himself and a good-natured question.
When Hinton asked if he could still join the Thanksgiving dinner, Dench didn’t hesitate. He gave him a seat at the family table. After all, what are grandmothers for?
The exchange of messages went viral and, when Americans learned that Hinton had actually spent that Thanksgiving with Dench and his family, they loved the story.
“My grandchildren made fun of me, they said: ‘We have to take technology away from their grandmother, because she doesn’t know how to use it properly’”, says Dench. “But it wasn’t my fault! My grandson changed his phone number, and Jamal kept it.”
The internet quickly started calling her the “grandmother of Thanksgiving”.
But this wasn’t a viral prank that happened just once. Since then, the two have spent every Thanksgiving side by side, except for last year when Dench . While he was undergoing treatment, Hinton made a video call to celebrate the date virtually.
The duo’s annual reunion turned out to be good news that returns every year. For a decade, the duo has made headlines thanks to their unique friendship, which has seen them through moments of love, loss and lots of pumpkin pies.
A tradition is born
From the beginning, the public also wanted to have a seat at the table. Jamal says that when he arrived at Wanda’s house that first Thanksgiving, he barely found a place to park, with so many reporters and television crews who had gone to the place that day.
“We couldn’t eat without someone asking us a question. It was crazy, but also amazing. It was a beautiful house, a beautiful family,” Hinton recalls, describing how Lonnie, Dench’s late husband, asked her one question after another about her life. The cameramen wanted pictures, but Lonnie really wanted to meet him.
The home-cooked dinner prepared by Dench was a success. Hinton says she wasn’t particularly a fan of pumpkin pie until she tried hers.
“For me, the best part is always the dessert,” jokes Dench.
At that time, the United States was changing.
Hinton was just 17 when he spent his first Thanksgiving with Dench and his family. (Tom Tingle/The Republic/USA Today Network/Imagn Images via CNN)
Donald Trump had just defeated Hillary Clinton in the 2016 elections. The Black Lives Matter movement was gaining strength, with . For the first time in over 100 years, Taylor Swift was in a public dispute with Kanye West.
Since then, the country has changed a lot, and so have Hinton and Dench.
Dench recalls something her husband said to her, upon returning from a night shift, about a year before, in 2020.
“He woke me up and said he had a message from God for me,” says Dench. “He told me, ‘God isn’t done with you and Jamal yet.'” He explained to him that America needed healing and that the two of them were being used as instruments to help the country heal.
“At the time, I didn’t really understand what he meant, but I took it seriously,” says Dench.
Reading, year after year, comments from people saying how their story touched them has been a joy, he adds.
“It wasn’t something I had planned. I didn’t do it on purpose. It’s just a blessing”, he reinforces.
Jamal Hinton and Wanda Dench take a selfie. The two have been friends since 2016, when a message sent by Dench to his grandson ended up being received by Hinton. (Michael Chow/The Republic/USA Today Network/Imagn Images via CNN)
Support in difficult times
As the world grappled with the loss and uncertainty brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, and Dench mourned her husband’s death, Hinton was there to support her.
The first Thanksgiving without Lonnie, in 2020, was a small event, with just a few close family members and Hinton. Dench says it helped to be surrounded by family, good food and support.
“We placed a plate on the dining room table with a candle, to represent my husband’s presence in spirit,” she explains. “And from then on, every year it got a little easier.”
Together, they keep ancient traditions alive, like going around the table every year to say what they’re grateful for. Dench says her answer is always the same: family — which now includes Hinton.
They also created new traditions. One Thanksgiving a few years ago, they stayed up until two in the morning playing board games. Today, games are as much a part of the annual celebration as the turkey itself.
But this duo’s unlikely connection goes far beyond the end of November.
Growing side by side
When Dench decided to get his first tattoo, he called Hinton to ask for a recommendation on where to go. He went further and accompanied her to the studio.
She made three shooting stars to represent her deceased husband, mother and father.
Hinton has managed to get away with cooking every Thanksgiving, jokes Dench, although he has helped her on other occasions. (Joseph Rondone/USA Today Network/Imagn Images via CNN)
“It was a lot of fun. I had a lot of fun,” says Dench.
Hinton, now 26, says he has come a long way since he was 17, when he described himself as someone who thought he knew everything and when he and Dench met.
“I feel like I know very little about the world and that I’m open and willing to listen and learn from anyone,” he says.
Hinton currently works as a businessman and sales director, but what he is most proud of is his role as a youth basketball coach: “I never imagined that one day I would be a coach.”
A genuine friendship
This year, it’s Hinton’s turn to receive it. The celebration will be at her aunt’s house, in Phoenix, and Dench, now in much better health, will be present. She says she’s looking forward to meeting Hinton’s family for the first time and thanking them for raising such a wonderful person.
“When I was a kid, my favorite moments were Thanksgiving, because I knew the whole family was going to my grandmother’s house and I was going to see all my cousins, uncles and aunts,” Hinton tells CNN. He was speaking as he prepared to go to Dench’s house, where the two were finalizing a surprise they have in store for their families this year – although they didn’t want to reveal it in advance.
This year’s celebration was sponsored by Green Giant, a canned and frozen vegetable brand that provided the dinner. Hinton once again escaped to the kitchen, says Dench.
“I think my goal now is to actually manage to not cook at all,” jokes Hinton.
Dench says it would never occur to him that a message sent to the wrong number would end up in interviews with major media outlets and sponsorship. The two even have a Netflix movie about their budding friendship.
Dench and Hinton admit they’re not sure why people have become so attached to their story.
“The only explanation I can find is that our friendship is genuine. It’s not fake,” says Dench. “Even if all the media disappeared and all the excitement ended, we would still get together every year for Thanksgiving.”
Happy Thanksgiving‼️‼️2016-2026 🎬10 Years later‼️
— Jamal Hinton (@Jamalhinton12)
