Sarrae Crane grew up on Long Island, where she was active in USY, spending summers at Camp Ramah and on USY summer programs. She is a graduate of Barnard College and obtained advanced degrees in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis and in Jewish History, with a concentration in history of Zionism, from Columbia.
She has devoted her life to serving the Jewish community. She worked for the American Zionist Youth Foundations and later the American Zionist Federation (now the American Zionist Movement). For over a decade she wore many hats at the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. Afterwards, she directed the annual General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America. She was the founding executive director of the Long Island Jewish Community Relations Council. Currently, and recently retired as she is the executive director of MERCAZ USA.
She has attended many Zionist Congresses over the decades beginning as a youth delegate. She was proud to be a delegate to the 39th World Zionist Congress.
She has served on the Boards of the JCPA, the American Zionist Movement, and the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations. She is as past chair of the Society for the Advancement of Judaism and served on the board of the Park Avenue Synagogue.
She and her husband Rabbi Jonathan Waxman live in Commack, New York and maintain Sarrae’s Manhattan apartment.