[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/03/27/art_heroes_cooper_cnn.jpg caption="Dr. Carnell Cooper's Violence Intervention Program provides training and support to trauma victims."]

BALTIMORE, Maryland (CNN) - Dr. Carnell Cooper, a Baltimore surgeon, is saving lives inside and outside the operating room.

Since becoming a trauma surgeon 16 years ago, he has dedicated himself to treating the many young African-American men who've been shot, stabbed or beaten, only to see them return to the ER with another severe injury just months later.

But when one of his patients was readmitted with a fatal gunshot wound to the head in 1996, it changed Cooper's life.

"The night that we pronounced that young man dead and my colleagues said there's really nothing we can do in these situations. ... I just didn't believe that," said Cooper, 54. "From that day forward, I said, 'Let's see what we can do.' "

Cooper created the Violence Intervention Program (VIP) at the Shock Trauma Unit of the University of Maryland Medical Center, the state's busiest hospital for violent injuries. It became one of the country's first hospital-based anti-violence programs.

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[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/03/20/art_heroes_munoz_cnn.jpg caption=" Jorge Munoz estimates he has served more than 70,000 free meals since 2004."]

JACKSON HEIGHTS, New York (CNN) - Every day, unemployed men gather under the elevated 7 train in Jackson Heights, Queens. Many of them are homeless. All of them are hungry. Jorge Munoz estimates he has served more than 70,000 free meals since 2004.

At around 9:30 each night, relief comes in the form of Jorge Munoz's white pickup truck, filled with hot food, coffee and hot chocolate.

The men eagerly accept containers of chicken and rice from Munoz, devouring the food on the spot. Quiet gratitude radiates from the crowd.

For many, this is their only hot meal of the day; for some, it's the first food they've eaten since last night.

"I thank God for touching that man's heart," says Eduardo, one of the regulars.

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