If you’ve never met Captain America, let me introduce him to you.
He’ll hate that I’m calling him that. He’ll say that it’s far too hyperbolic for someone like him. He’s far too humble for that elevated label.
But it’s honest. And the pieces sort of fit.
The biggest difference was that he wasn’t a scrawny weakling. At his peak, he tipped the scales at 355 pounds. Not an underdog. Just unseen.
Ethan is a man of quiet, deep faith. Faith in finding something in himself that pushes him forward, faith in the decency of humanity, faith in the selfless need to give back to society in any - and every - way possible, and simply a faith in divine spirituality.
Strength, beyond his body. Gratitude, beyond his soul.
Grace.
That’s what’s driven him to become an EMT. A Fire Academy trainee. And, this month, a military man. Although he’s not a police officer, “Protect and Serve” has a living, breathing poster child.
What led him down this path was unambiguously transformative.
He’d been working with Catholic Charities Veterans Services after college, assisting veterans home from foreign wars, distributing food at local pantries, surrounded by countless guardian angels. Veterans hold a special place in Ethan’s heart, as his great-grandfather was a frontline radio technician in WWII. It was then that he began working as an EMT.
Giving back was never a question for Ethan. Giving to himself was another thing entirely.
“Inside, I was full of rage at myself for being so heavy, and working on the ambulance corps fed into that. I saw how others were suffering and helping them, but at the same time I was angry at myself, at what I was on the outside,” Ethan explains.
But that rage didn’t create the Hulk. It released his inner Captain America.
Because that’s when the fight came alive in him. Quite literally.
“My boxing journey took off during the pandemic. I struggled with alcohol at the time and boxing gave me a new life and got me on the right path. Eventually I found my way to Aces Boxing Club where I found a home, community, and comradery amongst others who shared the same struggles and goals of discipline, health, and community. Thousands of hours were spent in my gym, training, sparring, and fighting anyone - between Olympic champions, swat officers, prisoners, veterans and some of the toughest men in NJ. I traveled throughout PA, NY and was willing to fight anyone and everyone. Every fight I learned about being a man, lost a little more weight and grew a little bit stronger, much of my addictive energy I had I focused on the gym.”
Ethan currently has a record of 11-5, with the 2022 NJ State Golden Gloves Championship under his belt. With no opponents in his open class bracket this year, he instead competed in the 2025 NJ Firefighter vs Police Boxing Championship, representing Wayne Co. 4 and walked away from a tough fight with the win.
It’s the physical work that feeds him, that saved him. It’s giving back that fuels him.
The EMS work and firefighting training serve both masters - physically grueling, but selfless sacrifice. And now, he’s going further, entering into the Army Guard Officer Candidate School this month. So if making a career as a pro boxer one day doesn’t materialize as he’d hope, he’ll have a pretty respectable fallback as a full-time Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. Service, within the service.
“I truly believe that we are put on this earth to learn lessons and serve others,” Ethan shares. “Working on the ambulance over the past 10 years and helping others in their medical needs helped me learn how to take care of myself.”
While Ethan has transformed himself, what has remained steadfast is his perspective in the world beyond him, his inclusive vision of the universal good. His spirituality isn’t driven by a checklist. “What” you believe isn’t the important thing - it’s that you believe. His respect for the divine is an inclusive tapestry, woven from faith of many colors, patterns, and histories.
For him, it’s that truth, piety, and charity are goals that include everyone, for everyone.
Ethan wholly, purely, lives his truth.
The world needs its Captain America.
The universe needs more Ethans.
It’s the physical work that feeds him, that saved him. It’s giving back that fuels him. "I truly believe that we are put on this earth to learn lessons and serve others."