Man Accidentally Invited by ‘Grandma’ to Thanksgiving Will Celebrate 6th Meal Together!

Jamal Hinton and Wanda Dench — two strangers who accidentally met via text message in 2016 — will soon have their sixth Thanksgiving meal together.

Over the weekend on Twitter, Hinton, 24, confirmed that he and his girlfriend Mikaela will break bread with Dench as part of a tradition that began six years ago.

“We are all set for year 6!” Hinton wrote.

Back in 2016, Dench thought she was contacting her 24-year-old grandchild when she accidentally sent Hinton, then 17, a text inviting him to Thanksgiving.

Though the two realized they were strangers after swapping pics, Hinton still accepted Dench’s invite — and they have been spending the holiday together ever since.

Sadly, in April of last year, Dench’s husband Lonnie passed away after contracting COVID-19 and battling pneumonia.

In a statement to Arizona’s Family, Dench remembered her husband as a “hero” who “had the truest heart of love, like no other.”

“He did so many acts of kindness that no one ever heard about,” she added. “He was my hero. And I’m a better person because of him.”

In a 2020 interview with Time magazine, Hinton said he initially felt “kind of weird” about going to Dench’s home, but immediately felt comfortable by her hospitality.

“What made me want to go was that I went and actually met her and she was pretty nice. So I decided that I’d just go and enjoy the time with her,” he told the publication. “It turned out to be a great thing.”

“She’s a great cook and she’s a great person to just hang out with,” Hinton said, adding that he particularly enjoys Dench’s turkey and green bean casserole.