Arizona pair celebrates decade of friendship that started with wrong text

MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — What began as a mistaken text message has blossomed into a 10-year Thanksgiving tradition that continues to capture hearts worldwide.

Jamal Hinton and Wanda Dench are celebrating their tenth consecutive Thanksgiving together, a friendship that started in 2016 when Dench accidentally texted the then-17-year-old Hinton, thinking she was inviting her grandson to dinner.

“There are no accidents. It was meant to be,” Dench said.

The mix-up occurred when Dench sent a Thanksgiving dinner invitation to the wrong phone number. When Hinton responded asking who was texting, Dench replied it was grandma.

“I get this text back saying who is this and I said its grandma and the next message was well send me a picture,” Dench said.

Friendship grows through life’s challenges

What could have been a forgettable mistake transformed into an annual reunion. The pair have supported each other through significant life events, including the death of Dench’s husband in 2020 and her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment last year.

“We just all clicked. It was amazing. We spent hours talking. There was no generation gap. It was just fun and joyful and exciting,” Dench said.

“I love it to spend thanksgiving with so many different types of people,” Hinton said.

The friendship has provided mutual support during difficult times.

“I was able to talk with Jamal and he’s always given me encouragement and I’ve been very blessed,” Dench said.

“It feels like a best friend. She feels like someone you can talk to about anything. So when you go through anything I call her all the time. She answers her phone,” Hinton said.

Both consider each other family now.

“Jamal will always be in my inner circle of family,” Dench said.

“Family she’s family no matter what,” Hinton said.

This year’s celebration was sponsored by Green Giant.

Last year, the pair met virtually while Dench was battling cancer, making this year’s in-person reunion particularly meaningful.

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