New Year’s Day is the opening day for collecting food in Wiscasset Middle High School’s return to WGME’s Spirit Challenge. The school won the cup nearly two years ago by racking up the most pounds of food among participating schools.

Heading into the new round, student council adviser Deb Pooler cited the past win as an example of what the school and the town can accomplish together.

“I am really proud of Wiscasset's win ... in 2014,” Pooler writes in an email to the Wiscasset Newspaper on Monday. “We beat out much larger schools including Portland High School! Supporting kids in our community has always been really important to Wiscasset. We are asking for everyone to once again show how strong and supportive Wiscasset and its businesses really are!

“The kids can not do this on their own,” Pooler writes. “The School Spirit Challenge is a coming together of our community, WGME Channel 13 and The Good Shepherd Food Bank to help fight hunger in Maine. Our previous win boosted school spirit and community pride!”

The school’s goal is to 60,000 pounds of food, according to Pooler. She asks community members and businesses to come to Stover Auditorium for the Jan. 22 spirit rally, televised from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. and featuring WGME anchor Jeff Peterson.

In a telephone interview Tuesday afternoon, Peterson said he has visited all the schools in the upcoming round and all are very excited to be doing it, for the food drive and the chance to show off their schools. The round will nearly cover the whole state, from York County to North Anson to Wiscasset, Peterson said.

Hall-Dale, Noble, Gray-New Gloucester, Rangeley, Yarmouth, Carrabec and Lisbon are joining Wiscasset in this round of the Spirit Challenge, Peterson said Tuesday.

Fore some of those towns,the appearance of a satellite truck usually means something bad has happened, but when the station’s truck is there for the rallies, that will be something everyone can enjoy and be a part of, he said.

Meeting with students and school officials Nov. 17, Peterson called Wiscasset’s first win the upset of the century; he still uses it an example to other small schools when they question their ability to compete with large ones.

Anyone who wants to help address hunger in Maine and support students in Wiscasset’s new run for the cup may donate food or money, Pooler writes in the Dec. 28 email.

The school will announce events, along with an online donation site and food dropoff locations.

In addition, Wiscasset schools and the Superintendent’s Office can accept checks made out to Good Shepherd Food Bank, with “Wiscasset School Spirit” in the memo line, Pooler writes.

Every dollar donated buys $5 in food for the food bank, so money goes further than food donations, a member of the food bank’s staff said during the Nov. 17 visit to the school.

The drive runs from Jan. 1 through Feb. 28.

Wiscasset Superintendent of Schools Heather Wilmot writes in an email response Tuesday afternoon: “At this point, I can share how excited I am that the students of WMHS have been brainstorming extremely creative fundraising ideas. I can't wait for the school department pep rally; it will surely catalyze additional energy related to the event.”