'Thanksgiving grandma' who went viral for her friendship with teen reveals heartbreaking health update
An Arizona grandmother who went viral in 2016 after accidentally inviting a young man to her Thanksgiving dinner has revealed she breast cancer.
Wanda Dench became unlikely friends with Jamal Hinton after she texted him in 2016, thinking he was her grandson, and invited him to Thanksgiving dinner.
In a post to social media, which she made via Hinton, Dench has said she has been diagnosed with breast cancer after coming down with bronchitis.
Hinton shared what he described as a 'special message' from her which said: 'I had a CT scan to check out my lungs. That's when a mass in my breast was detected.
'I am [and] have been currently going through chemotherapy. My family and friends quickly came to my aid and have supported me through everything.'
In a post to social media, which she made via Hinton, Dench has said she has been diagnosed with breast cancer after coming down with bronchitis
Her and Hinton went viral for their text exchange when she accidentally asked the then 17-year-old to Thanksgiving dinner
Dench also added that cancer does not run in her family and that all of her previous mammograms have came back as negative.
She said in her post that when she turned 65 in 2022 she assumed she would not have to get them anymore, adding: 'But I was wrong'.
Dench added that she has learned 'a lot of life's lessons through it all', and stresses that 'just because you may be older, you still have a life to live.'
Her and Hinton went viral for their text exchange when she accidentally asked the then 17-year-old to Thanksgiving dinner.
Hinton clarified to her that she was not his grandmother, but did ask: 'Can I still get a plate tho?' 'Of course you can, that's what grandmas do, feed everyone' she replied.
When Hinton showed up for dinner that year, she hugged him immediately, and it became their tradition to spend every Thanksgiving together.
Speaking to Today in 2021, Hinton shared that he was surprised when Dench said he could join her family's celebrations, but he decided to roll with it.
In 2016, Hinton was just 17 when Dench accidentally sent him a text message thinking he was her grandson
Hinton explained that she had texted the wrong person, but he then asked if he could 'still get a plate tho?' They spent Thanksgiving together for the first time that year
'Yes, there was a huge amount of hesitation because it was all just a joke,' he recalled. 'I was in math class. I was taking a test. And I was just like, 'Hey, why not?'
'I'm just an outgoing person. I like to meet new people and then she said, 'Yes,' and I was just starstruck, basically.'
Ironically, Dench isn't a fan of Thanksgiving, and she admitted on the morning show she actually wanted to cancel their holiday plans that year.
'I was tired of putting on the feast every year, so I asked my husband if we could just skip Thanksgiving that year and go off and have a mini-vacation or something,' she said. 'But little did I know that's not what the universe had planned for me.'
Dench and Hinton plan regular visits year-round, and during the pandemic, he and his girlfriend, Mikaela, left her food outside her door.
It was a difficult time for the widow, who lost her beloved husband, Lonnie, to COVID-19 on April 5, 2020, just days after he contracted the virus.
Dench isn't a fan of Thanksgiving, and she admitted on the morning show she actually wanted to cancel their holiday plans that year
They became unlikely friends after she texted him and invited him to Thanksgiving in 2016. The then-teen ended up going to her celebration and has continued to do so every year since
For her first Thanksgiving without her husband, she hosted an early dinner attended by Hinton and Mikaela, as well as her daughter and her grandson.
In December 2021, just a week after they spent their sixth holiday together, it was announced that a movie inspired by their story was in development at Netflix.
Last year they announced they would be opening up their annual tradition with a new set of strangers in collaboration with Airbnb.
Hinton and Dench have also announced they had become business partners with the launch of their mineral water company, BlackMP.
They also teamed up to compete for $250,000 as contestants on the TBS game show The Cube.
