Today Is National Doughnut Day

In the States today is National Doughnut Day and I've written a couple of posts on this blog waxing poetic about my love of Shipley's Donuts and 'Krispy Kracks'.

Some of the Shipley's Donuts locations in the area are giving out a free donut in honor of this day from 5 AM-12 Noon.

There's actually a serious reason why this day came into existence and eventually became celebrated in the United States.

National Doughnut Day started in 1938 as a fund raiser for Chicago's The Salvation Army. Their goal was to help the needy during the Great Depression and honor The Salvation Army "Lassies" of World War I, who served doughnuts to soldiers.

Not long after US entered World War I in 1917, The Salvation Army sent a fact-finding mission to France to find out what the needs of US servicemen were.  The fact-finding mission concluded that establishing  canteens/social centers they called "huts" which served baked goods, provided writing supplies and stamps, and a clothes-mending service would be a good way to do that.

The huts were quickly established by The Salvation Army near army training centers.in the United States staffed by six people that included four female volunteers who could "mother" the troops.  In addition approximately 250 The Salvation Army volunteers went to France to set up the huts near the front lines. 

Because of the difficulties of providing freshly baked goods from huts established in abandoned buildings close to the front lines, The Salvation Army volunteers Ensign Margaret Sheldon and Adjutant Helen Purviance suggested providing doughnuts to those front line locations.

They were a hit and the numbers of soldiers visiting The Salvation Army huts exponentially increased.  The 'doughboy' nickname that American troops were given in World War I is alleged to have started as a result of The Salvation Army huts, but its first usage actually goes back to the 1846-47 Mexican-American War. 

The Salvation Army still uses it as their spring fundraising opportunity, but independent and chain doughnut stores have adopted June 1 a big promotional day.  For those people like moi who love doughnuts in whatever flavor they come in, we're glad they did.

I don't have the ability to get Krispy Kreme doughnuts anymore unless I go to Da Ville or some locale in the Midwest or east coast in their sales turf such as Washington DC.
  
And no Mayhem, until I visit you and my Ice Capp loving homegirl in the Great White North or the parts of the US that have Tim Horton's locations, I won't be able to sample any of 'Timmys' delicious doughnuts.

But it still won't prevent me from properly celebrating this day.

On that note, in a few hours I'll be celebrating National Doughnut Day properly by making a trip to the Shipley's location down the street and getting a half dozen glazed donuts in addition to my free one.