For Oshawa resident Amanda McGill, every parent’s worst fear became reality when she learned her son was fighting for his life in a hospital thousands of kilometres away — in the middle of a war zone.
Her son, Ethan Custoza, was critically injured during a drone attack on October 5 while serving on the front lines in Ukraine. The 24-year-old, who celebrated his birthday just weeks earlier while at war, suffered devastating injuries during an assault operation in the Kharkiv region, near the Russian border.
Ethan was not a professional soldier, nor was he Ukrainian. Moved by footage he saw earlier this year showing civilians — including a three-year-old child — killed in a drone strike, the young man made a life-altering decision. In May 2025, he left Oshawa, travelled to Poland, crossed into Ukraine, and underwent eight weeks of military training before joining the 2nd International Legion for the Defence of Ukraine.
Despite his mother’s fears, McGill supported her son’s choice. “He had his mind made up completely,” she said. “I thought it was a brave and selfless act.”
Three months into combat, Ethan was struck by shrapnel believed to have come from a mortar explosion. According to his commanding officer, he suffered multiple wounds to the left side of his body, a collapsed lung, and a severe open fracture to his right tibia that caused massive blood loss. Two small fragments of shrapnel also lodged dangerously close to his heart.
Thanks to swift action by fellow soldiers and combat medics, Ethan was stabilized and evacuated under constant threat from enemy drones and artillery. He was eventually transported to a hospital, where doctors performed numerous life-saving surgeries.
Now hospitalized in Lviv, Ethan has undergone more than 25 surgeries. While his lung has stabilized, his right leg remains critically injured. Doctors recently removed four centimetres of infected bone and presented two options: attempt complex reconstructive surgery or amputate below the knee. Ethan chose to fight to save his leg, undergoing the first of several reconstructive procedures.
Recovery is expected to take at least a year, with no guarantee his leg can be fully saved. His mother also fears for his mental health, as he remains isolated, facing language barriers and trauma from the battlefield.
“I feel completely helpless not being able to be there,” McGill said. “It’s devastating — but we’re blessed he’s alive.”
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help cover travel costs so McGill and Ethan’s brother can be by his side during recovery. The fundraiser has already passed the halfway mark toward its goal.
Despite the uncertainty ahead, McGill remains grateful — to her son’s fellow soldiers who saved his life, to the medical teams treating him, and for the simple fact that she is not mourning her child.
“It’s tragic,” she said, “but it’s also beautiful. He’s alive, and that’s everything.”
photo Credits : Insauga ontario Local News
