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Grandma Who Invited Wrong Teen For Thanksgiving Invites Him Over Again

Grandma Who Invited Wrong Teen For Thanksgiving Invites Him Over Again

Wanda and Jamal now have a new Thanksgiving tradition

Rachael Grealish

Rachael Grealish

We've all sent a text to the wrong person. The cringe usually sets in straightaway, leaving us with plenty of opportunity for regret - but one grandma has managed to turn an instance of mistaken identity into a Thanksgiving tradition.

Back in 2016, Arizona-based Wanda Dench sent out her usual texts to family members to remind them of Thanksgiving dinner times. But there was a slight problem - instead of texting her grandson, she accidentally sent a message to a young man named Jamal Hinton.

Their text exchange naturally led to some confusion, with requests for photos clearing up that Jamal (then aged 17) was absolutely not Wanda's grandson.

Still, once it was all cleared up, Jamal asked if he could still 'grab a plate' - to which Wanda responded in the true spirit of the holiday and invited the teen over.

Since then Jamal has joined Wanda and her family for Thanksgiving as her 'honorary grandson', as an annual Thanksgiving tradition.

In 2017 Wanda told the Arizona Republic: "It was really nice having everybody here. We got to laugh about last year and reminisce about how it all blew up on our phone and how I had to change my number. We had a laugh and a good time."

Year on year Jamal posts about spending the holiday with Wanda and her family, sharing stories of their kindness on social media, and this year he tweeted three pictures of the pair with the caption: "2016, 2017...2018."

The duo are said to chat at least once a week - along with a new tradition, the text mistake also created a whole new friendship.

Grandma Who Invited Wrong Teen For Thanksgiving Invites Him Over Again.
Twitter

In 2016, just after their first dinner together, Jamal told ABC15: "I'd never seen her before and she welcomed me into her home. That shows me how great of a person she is, I'm thankful for people like that."

They're both glad to see the friendship continue and share an almost familial relationship - as Wanda - who Jamal calls his 'other grandma' - told the Arizona Republic: "For him to continue with the relationship, I'm just really pleasantly surprised. We're more of extended family and, best of all, friends."

Grandma Who Invited Wrong Teen For Thanksgiving Invites Him Over Again.
PA

Their text back-and-forth which started the whole thing was shared on social media over 200,000 times and shows the kindness that can be found in people.

Jamal is said to now have a 'standing invitation' to have Thanksgiving dinner with Wanda and her family in Mesa - it's stories like this that really do restore your faith in humanity.

Featured Image Credit: Twitter

Topics: Food, News, Interesting, Feels, US News, USA