Three prisoners demonstrate that valiant behavior isn’t reserved for people who have never made a mistake.

A heartwarming story of personal responsibility recently came from a source you might not necessarily expect – prison inmates.

A Fox News story reported the heroic story of prison inmates from Yacolt, Wash., who plunged into frigid water to save three boys when their canoe capsized in the fast-moving Salmon Creek.

The three inmates – Nelson Pettis, Larry Bohn and Jon Fowler, all serving time at a minimal security corrections facility for non-violent crimes – were just finishing their park clean-up duty when they heard children’s screams coming from the creek. From the water’s edge, they witnessed the three boys – ages 8, 10 and 16 – struggling to keep their heads above the 25-mph current, which was rushing toward the Washington River.

According to a People magazine story, Pettis and Bohn leapt right into the water, swimming out to the boys (who are also brothers) and carrying them to a nearby small island, while Fowler stayed on land to help emergency crews blow up an inflatable raft to bring the group back to shore. He told reporters that while some might find their actions surprising, “We did what any good person would do.” The men took off their shirts to wrap up the boys, who were promptly taken to the hospital for mild hypothermia after expressing their gratitude to the three inmates.

And in case you feel that responsibility is reserved for those who have always been model citizens, maybe Fowler’s statement to reporters will make you think again. “We made some bad choices in our lives, but we’re still just like everybody else.” Have you witnessed any responsible acts from unlikely places recently? Let us know.