Two Brothers and Best Friends Sharing Their Lives Together at Lakeridge Gardens

Charles (“Charlie”) Horchik wouldn’t have it any other way. 

For all of his life, the 85-year-old Oshawa native has lived with his fraternal twin brother, Andrew (“Andy”). And now, in their golden years, the Horchik brothers* continue to live together, in adjoining rooms, at Lakeridge Gardens.

“We see each other every day and we’re back and forth with our walkers,” said Charlie. “This is so ideal.”

While they call Lakeridge Gardens home at the moment, during much of their twenties, the two brothers travelled together through the eastern United States, Europe, and Scandinavia performing tap dance routines as part of variety shows. Andy and Charlie Horchik became known as the “Taylor Twins.”

“At that time, Horchik was a foreign name, which wasn’t very popular,” Charlie recalled. “Our manager said, ‘I’ve got you booked for your first appearance, but you have to have a name because of the advertising.’ He said, ‘How about the Taylor Twins?!’ There is no significance, but we all liked the alliteration!”

By the late 1960s, the Taylor Twins were booking so many gigs, they relocated to London, England. Ever so popular, the dynamic duo often danced with big headliners including jazz singers, Ella Fitzgerald and Rosemary Clooney.

“In our youth, we took tap dancing lessons,” Charlie remembered. “Our father was obsessed with Fred Astaire. We never planned on doing anything professionally with it, but through a set of circumstances, we fell into show business after auditioning with a friend for a variety show.”

That first audition eventually landed Charlie and Andy an incredible gig crisscrossing the Atlantic Ocean between London and New York, travelling to and from American bases.

“There were so many big stars we had the privilege of working with,” said Charlie.

After about 10 years travelling and performing on the road, Andy and Charlie returned home to Oshawa to settle down. There they went into business together, operating a convenience store, before taking customer service gigs with Nelson Publishing in Scarborough.

“My brother and I didn’t see a need to get married,” Charlie said. “We are best friends. We understand each other so well, so we built a life together.”

Unfortunately, shortly after they retired, the fraternal twins both contacted chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. COPD is a chronic inflammatory lung disease that causes difficulty breathing. Both brothers now live with a ventilator in each of their rooms.

“Andy got it worst,” said Charlie. “And it has just caught up with me and gotten progressively worse. We had a lovely apartment, but we couldn’t handle it anymore. It was time to move.”

And so, when two spots opened up at Lakeridge Gardens, Andy and Charlie took them immediately.

“When we got here, we just couldn’t believe how nice this place was,” Charlie said. “The staff and the dinners – all are fabulous.”

COPD restricts much of their activities these days. And though Charlie says he wishes they could participate in more of the home’s activities, so far, the visits from staff, volunteers, and their friends help to make life so enjoyable.

“We really feel at home here,” said Charlie. “We also have good companions, Russ and John, who join us for our meals daily.”

*During our interview, Andy was unable to join us because he was convalescing in his room.