Dwyane Wade got a special surprise from his beloved mom while guest co-hosting on TODAY with Jenna & Friends on Monday, July 7.
Co-host Jenna Bush Hager surprised Dwyane with a pre-recorded message from “Mama Wade.”
The 70-year-old pastor opened up about how Dwyane was there for her when she served time in prison for drug possession.
“You are and have always been a blessing, she told her son in the recording. “A blessing to me and so many others whose lives you have touched.”
Later in the segment, Jolinda joined Dwyane and Jenna on the set of TODAY. She said Dwyane was her pen pal while she served time.
“I remember how we became pen pals when I was incarcerated,” she recalled. “Your letters got me through each day and enabled me to be a part of all the wonderful things that was happening in your life.”
“When you sent me pictures of my grandson Zaire, I was able to tell from your letters how very proud you were,” Jolinda told her son. “You made up your mind that you were going to be the best dad you could be and that is exactly what you’ve become. 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 remembered her struggles as a drug addict and how her addiction affected her four children.
“My kids struggled with me,” she explained. “I grappled many years with drug addiction. Heroin, alcohol, pills. Well, you know, we can go on down you name it. Alcoholism, homelessness, in and out of prison. Just living a life that was totally separated from my babies. One thing I always wanted to be was a mother and once I stopped being that person, I lost me. And I didn’t know how to grab me back at the time.”
When Dwyane was a teenager, he moved in with his high school sweetheart, Siohvaughn Funches, and her mom. Siohvaughn’s mom invited him to move in with them to give him a sense of stability.
In 2002, Dwyane and Siohvaughn were married. They welcomed 2 children, Zaire and Zion (now Zaya), before they broke up in 2007, and divorced in 2010.
