Topeka ? Flags are to be lowered, cannon fired and oaths of citizenship taken today as Kansans pause to remember the lives lost during the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has ordered the state’s flags lowered to mark Patriot Day, the official name for the Sept. 11 anniversary. She also urged Kansans to pause for a moment of silence at 7:46 a.m. CDT, the time the first of two hijacked aircraft hit New York City’s World Trade Center.

“I am calling on the citizens of Kansas to join with Americans across the country praying for the lives lost in 2001, and celebrating the strength of the American spirit, which was visible across the globe after the attacks,” Sebelius said in a statement Wednesday.

Sebelius will take part in two activities today. She begins by participating in Topeka’s Day of Caring at Gage Park, an event designed to promote community volunteerism and pride. At noon, the governor will take part in a memorial service honoring Kansas firefighters on the south steps of the Statehouse.

Approximately 150 people from 59 countries are expected to take the oath to become U.S. citizens during activities at the Dole Institute of Politics at Kansas University in Lawrence. The institute will be open to the public, including a permanent display of two steel beams taken from the World Trade Center.

Fort Leavenworth officials plan to fire artillery rounds this morning on four occasions, two for the attacks on the World Trade Center and one each for the attack on the Pentagon in Washington and the hijacked plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. A remembrance ceremony also is scheduled on the post, with an address by Maj. George Smawley, a Command and General Staff College student who was assigned to the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.

A prayer breakfast is scheduled at Fort Riley, with Brig. Gen. Dennis Hardy, commanding general of the 24th Infantry Division and the fort, the featured speaker.

U.S. Atty. Eric Melgren will speak to the Topeka Rotary Club, reviewing how the USA Patriot Act has provided law enforcement with additional resources to fight terrorism.

The American Civil Liberties Union also will review the Patriot Act during a gathering at the Muslim Community Center in Wichita. Other activities include photograph displays, reflections from Muslim school children and information about Islam.