‘I was abandoned as a baby on Christmas Eve – 80 years later I found my brother living a mile away’
On Christmas Eve 1944, as London was rocked by the intense bombardment of the ‘Baby Blitz’, John Moore was left abandoned on the street. When he was just a few days old he was picked up by a police officer and taken to St Thomas’ Hospital; but details about his origin and family remained a mystery.
Four years later, he was adopted by a loving family in Kennington, south London, where he enjoyed a “happy” childhood. His busy life, between school and helping his neighbors at their market stalls on the weekends, didn’t leave much time to wonder where he came from.
He did not know that his biological father and half-brother Lucas Borg, born 11 years after Mr Moore, lived just a mile away in Kennington. The two grew up in close proximity to each other, but were unaware of each other’s existence until a Christmas gift from Lucas’ daughter changed everything.
‘I’ve had a happy life,’ Mr Moore said Independent. “I had a wonderful mother, father and two brothers. My only concern growing up was making sure my biological family knew I survived, was safe and had a good life?
“I never thought about how to find my biological family,” he explained. “I didn’t know how.”
Years passed and the two half-brothers each started families of their own. The first clue to their shared heritage came when Mr Moore, through his son’s work, took a DNA test and discovered he had Maltese heritage.
Curious about the explanation, Mr. Moore decided to try a similar home test from a different provider to see if it would give him the same result. The results were conclusive; One of his parents, always a mystery to him, was Maltese.
A few years later, Mr. Borg’s daughter, Ella, MyHeritage DNA test as a Christmas gift from her husband Ryan. She was surprised to find a close match in a man she had never heard of, who also had Maltese heritage and connections to south London. This was enough to convince Mr. Borg to take the test himself.
“We had a 50 percent match with John,” said Mr. Borg, now 70. “It was a surprise because I always wanted a brother or sister, but my mother couldn’t have another child.
“It was such a shock.”
Mr. Moore, now 80, was also stunned to learn he had family he never knew. “I wasn’t expecting anything family related from the DNA because of the time factor,” he said. “You know, if someone were a part of me, they could just pass by now. So many years have passed.”
The two reached out to each other and started sharing their stories and memories. On Easter Sunday this year, they met in person for the first time in a reunion they described as “emotional” and “nerve-wracking.”
“I was very nervous at first,” Mr. Moore said. “I didn’t know whether to shake Lucas’s hand or hug him because you’ve never met anyone with half your genes.”
But the conversation flowed and they soon learned there were striking similarities in their upbringings, from frequenting the Manor Place swimming baths in Kennington to the pie and mash shop they frequented.
Mr Moore discovered that his biological father, George, had arrived in England from Malta with nothing but a piece of cheese and a slice of bread when he was 18.
George, who could not speak English when he arrived, went on to serve in the Merchant Navy and was remembered by Mr Borg as a “kind” and “humble” family man.
The couple said the transition from feeling like outsiders to sisterhood “took time”, but they were pleased to be reunited thanks to DNA testing.
“It’s pretty incredible how close we are and yet so far away,” Mr. Moore said.
“It’s a shame our father George didn’t know John was around because he used to treat him like a son,” Mr. Borg added. “He was that kind of person. He was a very good person and he would embrace John like a son.”
