GOOD News Nation: With so much news going on in the world around us, sometimes the small, good stories can fall through the cracks. So here’s some good news from NewsNation affiliates across the U.S.

(NewsNation Now) — They may live on opposite sides of the U.S., but two Good Samaritans showed what it means to be a good neighbor and citizen by putting their own lives at risk to save those in need.

When David Lovette heard crackling sounds around 3 a.m. Thursday, he says he initially thought it was his wife cooking before he realized it was something much more dire: the home across from his was on fire.

The Rochester, N.Y. resident told WROC he knows the couple who lives there well, so after dialing 911 he rushed out to their front door. The older man who lived there was on his way out and asked Lovette to find his wife.

Despite not being able to see anything or breathe due to intense smoke, Lovette made his way to her by calling out in the distance.

“I just follow her voice, when I finally touched her hand, I couldn’t see her, we fell a couple times down the stairs but when I got there I brought her over here… I’m just blessed they got out,” he said.

Across the country, 39-year-old Chris Arias noticed something sticking out from the Sacramento River Thursday morning: a man sitting on the back of his submerged car.

Officials told KTXL a 67-year-old Oakland man was suffering from a medical emergency when he drove off a road and into the river, escaping from the car to call out to those on shore that he couldn’t swim.

So Arias jumped into the river and swam to the man, allowing him to hold on to his back as he swam back to shore. The car eventually sank down into the river.

“I didn’t want to watch; I figured I’d do something,” Arias said.