For the 80th year, Americans are celebrating a staple fried sweet this Friday on National Donut Day. Yes, that's right. Eighty years. During World War I, The Salvation Army's 'Donut Lassies' would hand out coffee and doughnuts to soldiers in the trenches. Baked goods couldn't survive the conditions of the huts and limited rations, so two volunteers conjured up the idea to fry the doughnuts in soldiers' helmets. The troops were nicknamed 'doughboys,' and when they returned from the war, they helped popularize doughnuts in the U.S. Then, during the Great Depression, The Salvation Army started National Donut Day to raise funds and bring awareness to the organization's social service programs. Read more on Colorado Springs Gazette