Sara Lefton

Chief Development Officer, UJA Toronto

Sara Lefton is the Chief Development Officer at UJA Federation of Greater Toronto.

In this role, she provides strategic leadership of UJA's fundraising and marketing departments. Sara is also a member of UJA’s senior executive team, overseeing the management of Canada’s largest Jewish communal organization.

Sara has extensive experience developing and leading teams in the private, not-for-profit, and political sectors. She began her career as a corporate lawyer at one of the leading large firms in Toronto, providing advice to clients on issues relating to regulatory compliance, public affairs, business planning and development. A long-time volunteer in Jewish communal organizations, Sara left the private sector to take on a professional role in the community and joined The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) where she was the Vice President responsible for leading the Toronto team of Canada’s leading Jewish and Israel advocacy and public policy organization. 

Sara is a graduate of the Faculty of Law at Queen’s University. Prior to commencing her legal studies, Sara earned her MSc in Government from the London School of Economics, focusing on Conflict Resolution. She also holds a B.A. (Honours) in Political Studies from Queen's University. More recently, Sara completed a Certificate in Professional Fundraising from Boston University.

Sara was born and raised in Toronto and lives there with her husband and two young children.