Cheshire Herald Sold to RJ Media Group

Press Release | Grimes, McGovern and Associates March 1, 2019

The Cheshire (Conn.) Herald, a weekly newspaper founded in 1953, has been sold to the publishers of the Meridan (Conn.) Record-Journal, a daily newspaper published in the same market, according to publisher Eliot White.

Joe and Maureen Jakubisyn, who owned the Herald for 31 years, have spent nearly a lifetime working at the newspaper, Joe for 50 years and Maureen for 40 years. They are just the third owners of the newspaper in the 66 years of its existence. Joe started as a printer and later moved to sales while Maureen started as a bookkeeper and later became jack-of all-trades.

The Jakubisyns were represented in the sale by John Szefc of Grimes, McGovern & Associates.

“We worked as a team,” Maureen Jakubisyn said, “with me staying more in the office and Joe still selling ads. We wore many hats, and there was never a dull moment.”

The Cheshire Herald has 11 full and part-time employees. In addition to the Record-Journal, the RJ Media Group also owns and operates six weekly newspapers, including the Cheshire Citizen. The Cheshire Citizen will continue its separate news coverage and mail delivery to Cheshire households.

“I’ve known Joe and Maureen for 30 years and respect their commitment to local journalism,” Eliot White told The Cheshire Herald. “We are pleased that they have selected us to carry on their proud tradition as the source of trusted local news and advertising in Cheshire. I am also pleased that my daughter (Liz White Notarangelo) will be leading this new era of The Cheshire Herald. As publisher, she will bring her enthusiasm and strong background in journalism and business.”

Editor and Publisher