When Wanda Dench tried to send a text to her 24-year-old grandson inviting him to Thanksgiving dinner, she accidentally sent the message to the wrong person, starting what would end up to be a heartwarming family tradition. Her text actually went to 17-year-old Jamal Hinton, who immediately recognized the mistake, but still offered to come to the holiday dinner.
The two first met on Thanksgiving day in 2016 and their spur of the moment tradition is still going strong. Hinton has spent every thanksgiving with Dench for the past six years, even inviting his girlfriend to partake in the dinner too. Dench, 64, responded to Hinton’s original text message with, “Of course you can [come]. That’s what grandmas do … feed everyone.” And this sweet message has obviously remained true to this day.
Dench told ABC Nightly News that she and Hinton had immediate chemistry. “I just clicked when I met him and first talked to him,” she explained. “I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I want to get to know this guy.’”
Every Thanksgiving, Hinton shares a photo on social media of his holiday dinner companions and he has nothing but good things to say about Dench. “It was a reminder that there are still some good people left in this world, he told People magazine. “She is a very sweet lady, she told me her husband was a veteran and she always invited his friends over for dinner, so she’s used to having a lot of people over. I just got a vibe from her that made me feel at home.”