Today, we introduce a few of the nominees who have already made New York a better place through their selfless actions and unflagging dedication.

When the city was sucker-punched by the blackout last week, lawyer Cliff Aaron and three other passengers were trapped in a pitch-dark Wall Street office elevator. One woman panicked, thinking it was a terrorist attack, and began screaming they were all going to die.

But Aaron's keen sense of smell told him there was no smoke and no trace of explosives. His heightened hearing actually told him they were stuck between floors.

Working deftly in the dark, he pried open the elevator doors and let the terrified woman, a man and another woman jump to safety on the 32nd floor.

"Being blind has its advantages," he quipped.

Aaron, 45, suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, a degeneration of the retina that can lead to total blindness.

For his bravery in the dark, he was nominated for a Courage Liberty Medal by his sister, Amy Adolf.

Aaron, married with three kids, boarded the elevator carrying the three others just seconds before the city was plummeted into darkness. When he got on, he didn't use his cane, so the others in the car had no idea he was handicapped.

He calmed the panicked woman, who thanked him and then caught up with a stream of workers flocking down the stairs. Aaron never saw the woman again.

"I don't think they knew I was visually impaired," he said.

And it was then that Aaron unfolded his white cane and tapped his way down the 32 flights to the street.