Lost and Found

Music Gives Brotherly Love A Strong Bond

Story by Dick Hildebrand / Photography by John Liviero

Born one year apart in the early 1960’s to teenaged parents, Tim and Ty were placed in separate foster homes before they had any chance of forming a brotherly bond.

Tim recalls, “Ty was six months old and adopted almost immediately, while I moved from foster home to foster home, then two different adoptive homes—starting at age 18 months until just before I turned 5. I grew up at the R.J. Bondy Centre, which had just opened at the foot of the Peabody Bridge. But the third time was the charm. My social worker Mary Jo Nolan and her husband Brian adopted me…and this time it stuck.”

The two brothers grew up in very different circumstances, both completely unaware of the other’s existence.

About 30 years later in 1994, Tim and Ty received letters from the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services, stating that a sibling was searching for them. Turns out the brothers had twin sisters named Nicole and Michelle, born in 1966. Nicole (who initiated the search for her brothers) now lives Hamilton; Michelle still lives in Windsor.

During individual interviews with the Children’s Aid Society, Tim and Ty were given pictures and biographies of each other.

“Imagine our surprise when each of us read that our hobbies were “playing guitar and singing in bars!”, laughs Ty.

Once they both made it known that they wanted to pursue the process and meet each other, the two long-lost brothers were reunited for the first time.

“After we finally met and talked about our mutual passion for music, I invited Tim over to my place, where we jammed together for hours,” Ty remembers.

Tim adds, “A few weeks later, we met up with Nicole and Michelle at my place in Leamington. I had a solo gig happening at the Sherk Complex, and I invited Ty to join me on stage—two guitars, two voices, one drum machine.”

“Ty and I played together every Friday night for a year and a half—and we packed the place.” But, “As anyone who plays in bands can tell you, things can happen to disrupt the harmony, and some discord started to simmer between Ty and me. Sadly, I didn’t handle “things” the way I could have and I regret that,” Tim confides.

Perhaps because they lacked the solid foundation of growing up together, Tim and Ty drifted apart rather than resolve their differences. Tim moved to the U.S., married and traversed across 9 states and 23 cities with his wife (a travelling surgical nurse) for the next 17 years.

When the couple returned to Canada in May 2018, Tim and Ty reached out to each other, renewed their musical bond and secured a regular gig at Wolfhead Distillery. Earlier this year, they rebranded as ‘Lost and Found’.

“And we’ve been having a ball ever since. When we’re together on stage, it’s magic!” they exclaim.

Both brothers play guitars, sing harmony and Ty also plays bongos and drums.

Their contrasting personalities make for an entertaining, versatile show that consistently delights audiences. Tim is the self-described “serious guy” while Ty is the clown…sort of a ‘Joe Walsh type’. Their repertoire comprises close to 500 songs, and they’re constantly working on new ones.

Unlike most bands, Lost and Found never rehearses. When Tim gets an idea for a new tune, he downloads the background tracks and emails them to Ty, who practices during the week; then they perform together “cold”.

“We didn’t get to bicker, beat each other up and do all those other brotherly things. So, we’re making up for that now–not physically, of course, but mentally and emotionally. We may be blood brothers, but music is our unbreakable bond.”

Tim and Ty are also making up for lost time with their biological family. They occasionally “share a beer now and then and shoot the odd game of pool” with their father. Their mom (who lives in Kingsville) often comes out to see Lost and Found with other relatives. Both brothers appreciate that they can have friendly, respectful relationships with their family.

“It’s kind of cool. They tell us they’re proud of us and don’t try to force things.”

After wrapping up a successful summer at Wolfhead, “Lost and Found” fully expects to return in Spring 2020. Their final 2019 gig happens there on November 22nd.

In the meantime, they’re concentrating on playing private parties, while Tim makes solo appearances at River’s Edge Tap and Table in East Windsor.

It’s been a long and winding road for Tim and Ty, but today, they’re both happy doing what they love best—making beautiful music—together.

“And now you know why we’re called ‘Lost and Found’!”