Wanda Dench, the woman known as the “accidental Thanksgiving grandma,” is grieving the loss of her husband, Lonnie, due to coronavirus.
Back in 2016, Wanda mistakenly invited 17-year-old Jamal Hinton to Thanksgiving in a text that went to him instead of one of her grandkids. In a heartwarming story, the couple invited Jamal and girlfriend Mikaela to Thanksgiving anyway – and he came every subsequent year, too. They would all become close over the next few years.
Sadly, Jamal confirmed on April 1 that the grandparents both fell ill with COVID-19: “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,” he wrote at the time.
He provided the update on Wednesday (April 8).
“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!”
“Also for those asking, Wanda is not sick,” he added. The update provided an outpouring of love and sympathy on social media, with “RIP Lonnie” eventually trending.
Our thoughts are with Wanda and Lonnie‘s loved ones at this difficult time.
Many stars have also sadly died of coronavirus – find out who we’ve lost.
