Wanda Dench, the grandmother who went viral after she accidentally texted a Thanksgiving invite to an unknown teen and had him over to dinner, is mourning the loss of her husband, Lonnie.
What We Know:
- Wanda told reporter Briana Whitney, “he had the truest heart of love, like no other…He did so many acts of kindness that no one ever heard about. He was my hero. And I’m a better person because of him.”
- On Wednesday, Jamal Hinton, the teen who received the viral text in 2016, shared the news via Twitter. Hinton tweeted, “as some of you may have already found out tonight Lonnie did not make it… he passed away Sunday morning but Wanda told me all the love and support he was receiving put a huge smile on his face so I thank every single one of you guys for that!”
- On April 1, Hinton tweeted that Lonnie and Wanda tested positive for COVID-19. The tweet said, “I am so sad to announce that Wanda and Lonnie both have COVID-19 and that Lonnie is currently in the hospital fighting both COVID and Pneumonia…Please send words of love and encouragement their way.” On Wednesday, he shared an update saying that Wanda wasn’t sick.
As some of you may have already found out tonight Lonnie did not make it… he passed away Sunday morning😔 but Wanda told me all the love and support he was receiving put a huge smile on his face so I thank every single one of you guys for that!🙏🏽❤️ https://t.co/tNvals0FMh
— Jamal Hinton (@kingjamal08) April 9, 2020
- Wanda and Hinton’s text exchange went viral in 2016. Fans recalled Wanda who is from Mesa, Arizona sending a text to her grandson asking him to come over for Thanksgiving dinner. But she ended up entering the wrong number. After receiving the message Hinton asked for a selfie thinking his grandmother had gotten a new number. Seeing that the woman made a mistake he sent a selfie back saying she had the wrong number. But he finished off the text saying “You not my grandma…Can I still get a plate tho?” Wanda then replied. “that’s what grandma’s do…feed everyone.”
