A woman travelled across the world to discover the truth about her adopted ‘twin’ brother after he was abandoned at birth and tragically died in a house fire.
Michaela Foster Marsh, 53, from Glasgow, longed to know where her adopted brother Frankie came from after he was welcomed into their family aged 13 months in 1967.
The siblings were born just four weeks apart and formed an unbreakable bond which would last beyond the grave.
However Frankie Marsh died in a house fire aged 27 in 1994 with Michaela never knowing why he had been abandoned at birth or information regarding his biological family.
Michaela Foster Marsh, 53, from Glasgow, longed to know where her adopted brother Frankie came from (left)
And so Michaela set out on a journey to discover who her adopted ‘twin’ Frankie really was.
Her quest took her across the world to Uganda, where she met Frankie’s three biological brothers.
Following her time in Uganda, Michaela was so touched by the poverty she encountered there, that she founded a charity, named Starchild, and built a school, in Uganda, in Frankie’s memory.
During her time there, Michaela discovered that Frankie’s biological mother was on a student bursary and the conditions stated that she should not get pregnant during her grant.
Frankie was welcomed into their family aged 13 months in 1967 by Michaela’s parents, Bill (pictured) and Morag Marsh
However, his biological mother, Janet Wivugira, fell pregnant and travelled to Belfast, Northern Ireland, to give birth before returning to Uganda.
Frankie was later to moved to an orphanage in Scotland, for unknown reasons, and was adopted by Michaela’s parents, Bill and Morag Marsh, who raised him alongside Michaela and her older brother, Stephen, in Glasgow.
Yet during Frankie’s childhood, the family’s only information about his background was inside a manila folder, to be opened only when he chose to do so.
Michaela revealed how the pair were ‘twins in every sense of the word’ and said the charity is her way of ensuring his legacy ‘lives on’.
The singer-songwriter said: ‘Frankie and I were twins in every sense of the word. We were best friends and we could fight like cat and dog too. We would even dress the same sometimes.
Her journey took her to Belfast, Lincolnshire, and eventually Uganda – where she found the school that Janet had once attended. Michaela outside Gayaza High School in Uganda
‘On the night he died, I felt a presence and I know that was a sign that I had lost him.
‘I owed to him, and to me, to find out where he had come from. The charity is my way of ensuring that his legacy lives on.’
Speaking about their differences in appearance, Michaela said: ‘My mother would walk down the street pushing a double pram, and people would stop her and ask why she had one black twin and one white.
Michaela and Rony returned to Uganda to officially open the Starchild School for Creative Arts in the village of Vvumba, where Frankie’s grandmother, Miriam Wivugira (pictured), lived
‘But time went on and people got used to us and at school we were accepted as twins.’
She continued: ‘As a teenager, Frankie was occasionally arrested, for absolutely no reason, other than he was black.
‘The police would just mix him up with another young black man and think nothing of it. He didn’t have it easy but incredibly had a sense of humour throughout.’
Michaela said she was in Canada the night Frankie passed away and woke up in the night to a ‘presence’ in her bedroom despite not being told the news of his death until the following morning.
She said: ‘The night Frankie died, I was working in Canada, and I woke up, acutely aware of a presence in my bedroom.
Pictured: Michaela in Monaco. Michaela said she was in Canada the night Frankie passed away and woke up in the night to a ‘presence’ in her bedroom
Since meeting Frankie’s brothers, Michaela and her partner, Rony Bridges (pictured), decided to set up a charity in her brother’s honour
‘It was so real, it terrified me. The following morning, I learned that Frankie was dead.
‘The bond between us was so strong, and I truly feel there was an intuition between us that night.’
In 2005, after their mother’s death, Michaela inherited the family paperwork, and decided to open Frankie’s manila folder.
The documents revealed that his mother was called Janet Wivugira – a rare surname in Uganda which would be enough to begin her search for Frankie’s heritage.
Frankie was adopted by Michaela’s parents, Bill and Morag Marsh (pictured), who raised him alongside Michaela and her older brother, Stephen, in Glasgow
Frankie’s first professional picture (right). Michaela learned that Janet, Frankie’s biological mother, had passed away two months before Frankie (left)
Her journey took her to Belfast, Lincolnshire, and eventually Uganda – where she found the school that Janet had once attended.
In a heartbreaking turn of events, Michaela learned that Janet had passed away two months before Frankie.
But the search led Michaela to Frankie’s brother, who not only looked just like him, but had the same name, Frank.
Michaela buying mosquito nets. Her journey took her to Belfast, Lincoln, and eventually Uganda – where she found the school that Janet had once attended
The siblings were born just four weeks apart and formed an unbreakable bond which would last beyond the grave
Michaela (pictured with Frankie) said: ‘People got used to us and at school we were accepted as twins’
Within days she met another brother, David, and a third brother, Paul, over the telephone.
She says: ‘Emotionally, it was overwhelming. In a matter of moments, I had inherited a family in Uganda.
‘I couldn’t just return to Scotland and abandon them. I felt I wanted to get to know them.
‘There were children in heartbreaking poverty and children just like Frankie. I wanted to help.’
Michaela revealed how after Frankie died she wrote a fictional account of what she believed his family might have been like and described how the similarities with the truth were ‘uncanny’.
The search led Michaela to Frankie’s brother, who not only looked just like him, but had the same name, Frank. Within days she met another brother, David, and a third brother, Paul, over the telephone. Pictured: Left to Right: Frank, Michaela, David. Back: Luca, their driver
Michaela and Frankie on their first Christmas together in Glasgow. Michaela revealed how after Frankie died she wrote a fictional account of what she believed his family might have been like
Starchild is now working on building a centre for families affected by autism and disabilities in Uganda
Michaela’s book, Starchild: A Memoir of Adoption, Race and Family, is out now and will be released in hardback on May 19
Since meeting Frankie’s brothers, Michaela and her partner, Rony Bridges, decided to set up a charity in her brother’s honour.
And on Valentine’s Day 2013, Starchild was officially launched – named after one of Frankie’s favourite songs by the group Level 42 which was also played at his funeral.
Three years later, Michaela and Rony returned to Uganda to officially open the Starchild School for Creative Arts in the village of Vvumba, where Frankie’s grandmother, Miriam Wivugira, lived.
Sadly Rony, an actor and playwright, died from lung cancer last year, but Michaela remains determined to continue their work in Uganda.
The charity is now working on building a centre for families affected by autism and disabilities in Uganda.
Michaela’s book, Starchild: A Memoir of Adoption, Race and Family, is out now and will be released in hardback on May 19.