Interview conducted using Engage, an AI chatbot by CloudResearch
Most people nearing retirement dream of slowing down, but at age 60, Yaakov Serle was just getting started. After decades as an advertising salesman, he took a bold leap, founding the Queens Jewish Link newspaper in 2012.
“I’ve been a commission salesman forever. I just felt it was time that I built some equity and did something for the community,” Mr. Serle explains. “There were Jewish publications in other areas but never a Queens Jewish publication. I felt this was the opportune moment. I jumped in and did it.”
But he didn’t expect the challenges that followed. “We started from nothing,” Mr. Serle recalls. “We found the printer, we found a designer, we found writers and sponsors. And then we had a snowstorm and our truck wasn’t able to bring the newspapers. We had to trudge through the snow to get the paper out.”
Faith and family have anchored Mr. Serle through turbulent times, along with a close relationship with the Queens Jewish Link’s rabbinic advisor, Rabbi Yoel Schonfeld. He also credits his “team effort” with his wife and staff like co-publisher Naftali Szrolovits and assistant to the publisher Shabsie Saphirstein.
Having Rabbi Schonfeld as a rabbinic advisor has helped the Queens Jewish Link navigate sensitive topics while maintaining a constructive outlook. Mr. Serle acknowledges the paper has printed some controversial pieces over the years, spurring strong reader reactions, especially when more liberal views clash with the community’s increasingly conservative bent. But he aims to be “fair and balanced” while keeping the community engaged and informed.
Some of Mr. Serle’s proudest moments include the paper’s successful campaigns preserving a 70th anniversary event honoring Israel’s founding and opposing a neighborhood bus lane that would harm local merchants. “We mobilized, we published, we tried to do whatever we could for the community,” he recounts. “I thank my friends and the community for jumping in.”
Amid difficulties with printers and designers, Mr. Serle has fought to keep the paper afloat and aligned with his vision. “There are weeks where on a Monday we don’t have enough ads, enough to publish,” he shares. “And then by the end of the day there’s enough. In any endeavor, you have to be positive and rely on Hashem. He takes care of the rest.”
But he keeps things in perspective with humor and humility. In 2023, while staying at Trump’s Bedminster Club for an event, Mr. Serle was determined to snap a photo with then-candidate Donald Trump. After a few misfires, he finally buttonholed Trump outside an ice cream shop.
“There’s like 12 Secret Service guys in front of him,” Mr. Serle recounts. “I said, ‘Mr. Trump, I have an article from the Queens Jewish Link about David Friedman,’ who was a close friend of his. He says, ‘David Friedman? Come over, let me see.’ And my wife was able to get a picture.”
Now, as the Queens Jewish Link celebrates its bar mitzvah year and 600th issue, Mr. Serle reflects on his unlikely journey with pride. The newspaper prints 10,000 copies weekly, reaching an estimated 30,000 readers across Queens and worldwide online.
“I started when I was 60 years old and I’m now 73,” he marvels. “We’ve grown to be what the community wants.”
A gala networking event on February 26 will mark the milestone, featuring world-famous WABC radio show host Sid Rosenberg as the keynote speaker. As always, Mr. Serle is most excited to bring the community together. Through snowstorms and setbacks, simchas and scoops, the Queens Jewish Link carries on - a testament to one man’s leap of faith.
“We’ve grown to be what the community wants.”
Yaakov Serle is the co-publisher of the Queens Jewish Link, and he and his wife Atara are proud members of the Young Israel of Queens Valley.
By Reuben Paris