ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times

DATE: Wednesday, April 2, 1997               TAG: 9704020038
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C-1  EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON THE ROANOKE TIMES 

CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM ON CORN FLAKES BOX SING THEIR PRAISES, SALEM-WITH CEREAL

If you thought the celebration over Salem's state football championship had ended, go check out the cereal aisle at the Spartan Square Kroger April 12.

It's not exactly Wheaties, but come April 12, Salemites will have their own breakfast of champions.

The Kroger store at Spartan Square on West Main Street in Salem will stock its shelves that Saturday with a cereal box featuring photographs of the state AA champion Salem High football team. The corn flakes, called Hometown Stars and selling for $4.99 a box, will be available for a limited time only at the Spartan Square store.

A percentage of the profits will go to the high school.

Kroger plans to roll out the product in fitting style for Salem, where folks are downright serious about their high school sports. Members of the championship football team will be on hand to autograph the boxes. A hot dog wagon will set up outside.

"That'd be a way to make a cereal sell in Salem," said City Manager Randy Smith when he heard the news.

Since tearing down Victory Stadium's goal posts following Salem's victory over Sherando to claim the school's first state football championship Dec. 7, Spartan fans have hardly stopped celebrating.

The city held a parade down East Main Street in January and ended it with a citywide party at the Salem Civic Center.

Recently, Salem taxpayers dished out $18,000 to give each of the 71 team members a custom-made championship ring.

"If [the cereal] is going to go anywhere, it's going to be here," said Mike Christle, co-manager of the Kroger store.

The cereal comes from the Carlisle Cereal Co. of Bismarck, N.D., which promotes local high school sports by printing team photos on its cereal boxes.

Bill Street, general manager of the Kroger, heard about the company from a grocery merchandise representative. He decided if any locality should have its own cereal box cover, it's Salem.

Street cut a deal with the cereal maker to print Salem's photo on the boxes and sell them in his store.

A team photo of the 1996 Salem Spartan football squad will be on the front of the box. A collage of Spartan football photos will cover the back.

Kroger has reserved some boxes for the high school and individual players. About 1,300 boxes initially will be available to the public.

Depending on how quickly the cereal sells, "if we can get more, we probably will," Christle said.

LENGTH: Medium:   57 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:  JANEL RHODA/THE ROANOKE TIMES. For $4.99 a box, the 
          Spartan Square Kroger will provide you another way to commemorate 
          that championship season. color.