Flanked by two beams that formed part of the World Trade Center, which was destroyed five years ago, visitors to the Dole Institute of Politics at Kansas University view the center's World Trade Center Memorial and an exhibit of Associated Press photos titled 9/11

The only thing Jordan Goldschmidt knew about Christopher Lee Burford was that he died during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

But that was enough for Goldschmidt to make a small donation in Burford’s name Monday as he participated in the Good Deed Mitzvah Marathon in the Kansas Union lobby. It was his way of joining millions of Americans across the country in paying tribute to 9/11 victims.

Goldschmidt’s good deed was to buy a letter that would become a part of a hand-scribed Jewish Torah scroll. In making the donation, he chose a slip of paper with Burford’s name and picture on it. The KU senior from Wichita then tacked the slip to one of two boards serving as a miniature replica of the World Trade Center towers.

“I tried to pick out someone close to my own age,” Goldschmidt, who also is Jewish, said.

A check of online sources revealed that Burford, 23, from Hubert, N.C., was a Navy electronics technician killed at the Pentagon when a hijacked American Airlines plane crashed into the building.

The good deed marathon started at 11 a.m. and was to continue until 3 p.m. Shortly after noon, 17 photo-bearing slips of paper had been tacked to the boards.

Mourners weep as they kneel next to a reflecting pool Monday at the site of the World Trade Center in New York City. Americans across the country paused Monday to remember the 9/11 attacks, the worst terrorist act on U.S. soil. At ground zero, four moments of silence were observed to mark the precise time jetliners crashed into the twin towers, and loved ones of the victims took 3 1/2 hours to recite victims' names.

Those participating had an opportunity to commemorate the 9/11 victims while doing one of several good deed options. They could write a message on a card to be given to a child patient at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, say a prayer, make sandwiches for a homeless person or make a contribution toward Israel’s rebuilding efforts in its northern region or to survivors of the Darfur genocide in Sudan.

The event was sponsored by the Chabad Jewish Student Center. There are about 100 centers on campuses across the country where similar events were taking place.

“This is a powerful way of making connections and commemorating 9/11,” said Rabbi Zalman Tiechtel, one of the directors of the center.

Tanya Johnson, a KU senior from Dallas, said she routinely dumps loose change into a “Tzedakah,” or charity, container, which she then donates to the Jewish National Fund to help Darfur victims. She picked a slip of paper representing 9/11 victim Thomas E. Burnett Jr. simply because it was at the top of the stack.

“I didn’t know any of the victims, so I didn’t see any reason to pick one over another,” Johnson said.

Burnett, 38, of San Ramon, Calif., was a passenger on United Flight 93, the plane that crashed outside Shanksville, Pa.

Elsewhere on the KU campus, people streamed into the Dole Institute of Politics during the noon hour to view a three-panel photographic display featuring Associated Press photos from 9/11.

Among them were friends Sally Beal, of Leawood, and Karol Katz, of Kansas City, Mo. They stopped by to see the photos and view the rest of the Dole exhibits after having lunch at Wheatfields Bakery, 904 Vt.

“It was well worth the trip,” Katz said.