He’s a Harlem rapper, she’s in a retirement home. This word app brought them together

It was words that sparked the friendship between a 22-year-old rapper from East Harlem and an 81-year-old woman who lives in a Florida retirement community.

Spencer Sleyon was randomly paired against Rosalind Guttman in a game of Words with Friends on his phone last summer. They would eventually play more than 300 games against each other, and a friendship was born.

A friendship that would eventually lead to Sleyon traveling more than 1,000 miles to meet his good friend in person for a quick tour of Palm Beach and some lunch.

“When I met her it was so natural,” Sleyon told the New York Times. “It wasn’t like anything spectacular, or different than you speaking to one of your friends.”

When the games started, it was strictly business, he told the Times.

Eventually though, they began to use the app’s chat feature to talk about current events and the details of their lives – “just regular, everyday chatting,” he said.

Sleyon joked with his friends about the unusual friendship every time her name would pop up on his phone, he told CBS news, and according to the Times, he would call her his “best friend.”

A few months ago, Sleyon’s friend’s mom, Amy Butler, a pastor at Manhattan’s Riverside Church, overheard him talking about his friendship with Guttman, CBS reported. Butler was touched by the story, and she asked to share the story in an upcoming sermon.

He agreed to let her share the story, but Butler wanted one more thing – she wanted the two friends to meet in person to “really finish the story off,” she told the Times.

So, Butler and Sleyon flew to meet Guttman at her retirement community.

“She’s (81) & lives in a retirement community in Florida. He’s 22 and lives in Harlem,” Butler tweeted. “They met online playing #wordswithfriends. Tomorrow they’ll meet in person. I get to be there.”

“It was more beautiful than I could have even imagined,” Butler told the Times. “There was no hint of awkwardness. It was like they were magnetically drawn to each other.”

Guttman has not spoken to any media outlets, the Times reported, but she did e-mail Butler with a message she could read in her sermon:

“Dearest Amy (Butler),

I’m at a loss for words to describe today. Without question, it was one of the most memorable days of my life. I’m still basking in the glow of warmth and friendship. You and Spencer extended yourselves to me and embraced me in a most unbelievable fashion. My only words in this moment are a humongous thank you. I love you both to the moon and back.

Ms. Roz (Guttman)”

The tweets have since gone viral, and people are loving this heartfelt story.

“A lot of people I saw online said, ‘I needed a story like this, especially with the race relations in this country right now,’ ” Sleyon said.

Even the game itself loved this story.

“We can’t get enough of this! Amazing,” the Words with Friends Twitter account posted. “Thank you for sharing your story with us.”

This story was originally published December 8, 2017 at 1:19 PM with the headline "He’s a Harlem rapper, she’s in a retirement home. This word app brought them together."