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Sometimes the best connections happen by chance — and for one Arizona pair, that bit of luck has turned into yet another Thanksgiving that they’re spending together. This year, it will be their 10th.
Back in 2016, Wanda Dench meant to invite her grandson to her Thanksgiving celebration. Instead, she accidentally texted Jamal Hinton of Phoenix.
The two realized the mistake once she sent a photo confirmation of herself, with Hinton responding, “[You’re] not my grandma,” and adding a laughing emoji.
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Hinton attached a selfie to confirm she had the wrong number, but Dench asked if he could stop by for dinner anyway.
The story went viral on social media, and even now, their annual tradition continues to capture the hearts of Americans across the nation.
Dench and Hinton talked to Fox News Digital about how their accidental Thanksgiving invite blossomed into a decade-long friendship — and how they’re celebrating their 10th holiday together.
“I remember like it was yesterday because it was exciting and fun, and totally unexpected [in terms of] the end results when all the media kind of circled us,” said Dench. “Meeting Jamal was the best thing ever, and I am saying that from my heart. That’s true.”
Their unlikely friendship has remained a source of strength.
Hinton, for his part, said meeting Dench changed his life. “I remember it like it was yesterday, my senior year [of high school]. I was already like the popular kid, [and] I became like the super popular kid.”
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He added, “But for me, the story’s been a blessing since day one.”
Even with Hinton’s move out of Arizona and then back, and now to Florida — plus the loss of Dench’s husband and a breast cancer diagnosis — their unlikely friendship has remained a source of strength.
This year will be extra special, as Dench said she is now officially cancer-free.
“When I was diagnosed, I was a little surprised because [breast cancer] doesn’t run in our family or anything, and at my age, I thought — I don’t know — I was past it, but obviously not,” said Dench.
She said at first, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to go public with her diagnosis. Yet friends and family encouraged her to use her platform to spread awareness, she said.
“I wanted to get the message out there to all women, but especially women in my age group, because I think when we get to my age, we think we’re past all the mammograms and everything, but we’re not,” said Dench. “We still have a life to live.”
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Dench said Hinton encouraged her to share her diagnosis last October.
“Jamal goes, ‘This is a good month to do this because it’s breast cancer awareness month.’ And that was in October of last year.”
She added, joking, “I didn’t even know it was breast cancer awareness month, and I felt like I should have known that before him.”
Dench said she always thought it was the cutest thing, and that she’s been blessed by the outpouring of support she has received.
“I’m grateful that I got that message out there,” she said. “I’ve had a lot of responses. Women are thanking me for mentioning that, and they’re telling their mother or their grandmother,” she said.
Said Hinton, “I love the fact that she said that we have a story, and that it’s a really good feel-good story. And it comes around every single year.”
This year, Hinton will be “hosting” Thanksgiving. The meal will be catered through a partnership with Green Giant to celebrate the company’s 100th anniversary.
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“There isn’t one thing I don’t like on the menu,” said Dench.
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