Family celebrating birthday on shore were returning due to current when they saw floating chair — it became a hint in a life-saving rescue

They had seen multiple thunderstorm warnings and were going to the shore until things turned around.

PUBLISHED 4 HOURS AGO

(L) A family boating at a lake. Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Thomas Barwick (R) The couple who spotted the chair. Cover Image Source: YouTube | WKTV News Channel 2

Many people hope to do something special for their birthday. However, a few might get to save a person's life, like Gary Jennings and his family. The family was out on the lake to celebrate Gary's birthday the following day. Gary and his wife, Rachel, got warnings about an incoming thunderstorm and started making their way back to the shore after boating at Oneida Lake with their kids. They were navigating a current and spotted something on the water that saved a person's life, per WKTV News Channel 2.

A family riding a boat on a lake. Representative Image Source: Getty Images | Andersen Ross

The Jennings family had spotted a boat chair floating on the water and decided to take a closer look. Once they started looking around, they also saw a man wearing an orange T-shirt and a life vest, holding onto the wreckage of a capsized boat. He was 77-year-old Joseph Davis, who had come out to the lake with his 66-year-old friend Brian Palmer for fishing at 8:30 that morning. Their boat capsized because of the rough waters and the two of them had been separated from each other. They were stranded in the middle of the lake without a boat and without any help for around five hours before the Jennings found Davis.

A boat capsizing due to rough waters. Representative Image Source: Getty Images | Onne van der Wal — A boat capsizes due to rough waters. Representative Image Source: Getty Images | Onne van der Wal

"We saw the boater seat in the water. We approached him. We asked him if he was OK or needed help. He indicated he did need help. At that point, we saw the partially capsized boat," Rachel recounted. She immediately called 911 while Gary tried to take the boat closer to Davis so he could get on it. The man had to mind the boat's engine and ensure that it didn't hurt Davis. Gary threw a rope into the water so Davis could hold onto it. "As soon as he got the rope and then he got to me, he grabbed my hand and just looked into my eyes. And he said, 'Don't let go.' I said, 'I'm not going to let go, buddy. Don't worry,'" Garry shared. The couple finally managed to get Davis on the boat safely, who had a few bruises because of holding onto the wreckage for so long.

A rescue team at a lake. Representative Image Source: Getty Images | Alena Paulus

Davis informed the family about his friend, who had been separated from him because of the rough waters. He explained that he might be in some other part of the lake. Fortunately, some other people found Palmer and helped him out of the water as well before the rescue team arrived at the scene. The Jennings were thankful that they were there to help Davis. "We had talked about not going out, we had talked about delaying going out because of the weather. Thankfully, we decided to go out and came across all of this and were able to help out," Rachel admitted. Both Davis and Palmer were brought back to the shore and were checked on by EMS.

Rachel and Gary believed that they were just trying to do the right thing. "Just do the right thing. That's all you have to do. It makes life easy. Do the right thing because the next person will do the right thing for you," Gary pointed out. "If you stumble on someone, it doesn't hurt to say, 'Are you OK? Do you need help?'" Rachel continued. The water had gotten pretty rough and choppy at the time of the incident, per the outlet. The family remarked that they wouldn't forget that day for a long time.