Science teacher Jean Witty never thought she would call a boy from Tokyo her son.

But then the improbable became a reality in the summer prior to the 2016-2017 school year when senior Hikaru Ozone moved into her house to finish his senior year while the rest of his family returned to Japan.

“My husband and [son, senior Thomas Witty], had a conversation in our family room one day, … and I call it their ‘Blind Side’ moment,” said Jean Witty. “[Inviting] Hikaru to be able to stay would mean that he would be… our [baseball team’s] catcher for his senior year.

According to Ozone, his parents and brother were going to move back to Japan during the summer going into his senior year, so he decided to stay and live with his good friend, Thomas Witty, and his family. He did this to continue his baseball career at Glenbrook North and also so he could attend college in the United States to study engineering.

Ozone said living with the Witty family is a very different and unique experience for him.

“The Wittys are really Catholic and go to church every weekend, and that’s a new thing to me,” said Ozone. “ … The food they eat, the way they spend their weekends, it’s a completely different lifestyle.”

Thomas Witty said he not only considers Ozone as his really good friend, but as a brother who always comes to support him at his basketball games and someone who he can always rely on. They now do more activities together such as playing video games, sports and chess. He even taught Ozone how to play fantasy football, and Ozone ended up winning the league against his baseball teammates.

“He would like to say [fantasy football takes] skill, but he got really lucky this year,” Thomas Witty said.

Ozone said he appreciates how welcoming, accepting and kind the Witty family has been toward him.

“They care a lot about me,” said Ozone. “They always ask how school [is] going, how [my] grades [are], [and] how’s baseball.”

According to Jean Witty, their family has also helped Ozone with a variety of things such as his college application process and learning how to drive.

“He’ll be my chauffeur here [this] spring semester,” Jean Witty said.

Jean Witty said Ozone has been a pleasure to have around the house.

“His work ethic and respect for adults [have] been something that both my husband and I have appreciated so much,” Jean Witty said.

Jean Witty said the first week Ozone was living with them, they took a trip to Door County, Wisconsin and played baseball while on vacation. Ozone was shocked by how baseball-oriented the Witty family was.

“We took a family vacation the first week he was living with us,” said Jean Witty. “ … Both boys had brought their mitts, and they brought some baseballs and bats [on the vacation]. My husband took them over for hitting and baseball practices at a local high school there. I don’t think Hikaru’s family used to do athletic-related activities on vacation [so] he sort of looked at my husband like, ‘Wait a minute. What is this all about? We’re already working out? I am [out of] season.’”

Ozone said by moving in with the Wittys, he now gets to finish his last baseball season.  He has played baseball since he was little in Japan.

“My dad was really big into baseball and bought me a glove when I was four,” said Ozone. “I played catch with him all the time, and then I joined a baseball team [in Japan] when I was in first grade, and, ever since then, I’ve been loving baseball.”

Baseball Head Coach Dominic Savino said Ozone was the only player his age during his sophomore year to move up to varsity and was a large part of the team’s past success.

“I think last year we probably went a month over the course of a season where the ball never made it to the backstop, and that’s a credit to him,” said Savino. “I think our pitchers have a ton of confidence in throwing to him, so I would say his versatility on defense is his greatest strength.”

Savino said Ozone’s ability to consistently perform at a high level is what makes him stand out among other players.

“He participated in the Chicagoland Classic Showcase last year, and that’s very difficult to earn an invite to that, but he played well enough his junior year to make that happen,” Savino said.

Ozone said despite losing some key starting players from last season, this year’s team has been very committed in the off-season and is determined to do well this upcoming season.

“It has been a while since we have won regionals, so our number one goal is to make it out of regionals … and [state] if we can go that far,” Ozone said.

Savino said the coaching staff is extremely proud, not only of Ozone’s baseball abilities, but of the way he has approached things at GBN. 

“I think it’s important to understand, as good [of] a player as he is, he’s an even better young man,” Savino said.

Ozone said he will miss his parents cheering for him in the stands this upcoming season, but knows that the Witty family will always be there for him.

“I’m definitely going to miss my parents coming to my games, but I feel like Mr. and Mrs. Witty will be taking that role this year,” Ozone said.