The UA Jewish community's goal of holding the largest single Shabbat service in North America Friday failed to meet the 1,000 attendance mark.

Shabbat services are a celebration in which those of the Jewish faith gather on Fridays to welcome in the Sabbath, said Emily Mallin, president of Student Coordinating Committee at the Hillel Foundation, which organized the event.

The foundation organized Friday's "Shabbat 1000" event in an attempt to bring 1,000 people to Shabbat services. More than 600 people attended the services in the Memorial Student Union Senior Ballroom.

"We are thrilled with the number of people who attended the event," said Mallin. "People are already talking about a Shabbat 1000 for next year."

Brandon Apsell, media arts senior, said the Shabbat 1000 was the best event he has attended at the University of Arizona.

"There are not many opportunities to get together with other Jews, especially on such a large scale," he said. "They did an amazing job."

Johnathan Kaplan, program director at the Hillel Foundation, said he hopes the event will spur more people to get involved with Hillel.

"It's a tremendous accomplishment that we got as many people as we did," he said. "I hope this event will encourage students to become more involved with their religion."

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