Dwyane Wade’s mother Jolinda Wade penned a surprise letter to her son, expressing her gratitude to the Miami Heat legend for supporting her while she was incarcerated in the 1990s.
Wade, who is co-hosting this week’s Today with Jenna & Friends, was surprised with his 70-year-old mother’s heartwarming letter. Jolinda in her letter described her son as a “blessing.”
“A blessing definitely to me and to so many others whose lives you have touched. You are a history maker,” she wrote.
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Jolinda, who is a pastor, praised her son for not being a time waster. “You, my son, definitely do not waste your mind. You do not squander your dreams or your life’s purpose,” she wrote. “I love that about you.”
Mama Wade, as she’s affectionately known, then touched on her incarceration and how her only son was there for him during those trying times.
“I remember how we became ‘pen pals’ when I was incarcerated. Your letters got me through each day and enabled me to be a part of all the wonderful things that were happening in your life,” she wrote.
Wade, 43, is a proud father of five children, and Jolinda in the letter praised her son for being an amazing parent. “When you sent me pictures of my grandson Zaire, I was able to tell from your letters how very proud you were. You made up your mind that you were going to be the best dad you could be. And, that is exactly what you have become,” she wrote.
“Son, you are simply one of the best dads a child could have. Just like everything else in your life, you give fatherhood your all!”
Jolinda then went ahead to commend her son for embracing his daughter Zaya after she came out as transgender.
“My love, I admire how you embrace your beautiful child Zaya, my granddaughter, and encourage her to be who she is. What a dad!! You protect her; speak with her to understand who she is. You don’t judge or condemn,” she wrote.
“In our family, you are the first to win on so many levels. I am blessed to watch your life unfold before my eyes.”
In his 2021 book, A Father First, the NBA champion touched on his mother’s previous battles with addiction.
“There is no question I worried about my mother when she was out at night, and loved her so much I couldn’t sleep because I wanted her to come home and let me know she was okay,” he wrote.
“But there is also no question that JoLinda Morris Wade’s love for her children and her desire to see us achieve our dreams was the most important truth of my early years.”
