Brothers meet after more than half a century
The two men were amazed at how much they had in common.
TWO South Coast brothers, born in the 1950s, had never met each other until recently when they were finally united through Facebook.
It was Garth Garnham of Sea Park who initiated the search for his long-lost brother. Born in January, 1954, he was a young boy when he was told about his father’s divorce and that a son had been born to his first wife. All his life he had longed to make contact with his unknown half-brother.
Robbie Tomsett didn’t even know he had a brother. He was born in January 1950 but regrettably by this time his parents had already divorced. He was brought up bearing his mother’s maiden name, with the understanding that his father had died.
After numerous failed attempts over many years to find Robbie, Garth decided to look for him on Facebook late last year. He excitedly found the name and sent him a contact request to which he responded almost immediately. He was amazed to discover that Robbie lived in Warner Beach, just 85km from his Sea Park home.
After numerous emails and transmission of photos they decided to meet on both of their birthdays this year so, on January 10, Garth’s birthday, the long-overdue but eagerly-awaited meeting took place.
“It felt as if I have known Robbie my whole life,” said Garth. The two brothers seemed to have so much in common. By the time they met again on January 24, Robbie’s birthday, a firm friendship between the two long-lost brothers had been established.
“Thanks to Facebook our family is now complete,” said Garth. They can still look forward to meeting each other’s children as all of their children work overseas.
