BEIJING, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- A national online vote to select grassroots heroes whose benevolent deeds have struck a chord among Chinese netizens kicked off Friday.

Starting from Friday to Dec. 18, netizens can vote to select 10 individuals or groups from the candidates as China's grassroots heroes for 2018, via the official website, WeChat accounts and mobile apps of Xinhua News Agency, the event's organizer.

Grassroots hero candidates are nominated either for their good deeds reported by Xinhua journalists or a recommendation from other institutions. The final laureates will be decided after online voting and a review by experts concludes. The winners will be announced to the public during the award ceremony in January.

The candidates include two Tibetan sisters who patrolled the border for decades, a lady who tended over a hundred left-behind children in a mountain village for six years, a policeman who caught a suicidal girl who jumped off a building with his bare hands, and a villager who ran a free library in his hometown for 44 years.

The event has been held eight times since it was established in 2010, aiming to promote the good deeds of ordinary people and convey positive energy throughout Chinese society.