The thing that he'll go home to after he's fought against all the criminals or werewolves or tornadoes filled with sharks, or whatever, is right there to remind him to keep on keepin on.
It might not have been going out in a blaze of glory right then, but, it could have also been a moment where you just decided to move on and start looking for something else to pay the bills.
I try to do little things like let people out of the McDonald's drive thru on Limit when it gets busy. It's not a huge deal, but I know that helped somebody get on their way.