Galentine's Day: How Parks And Rec's Leslie Knope Started This Unofficial Holiday

In season 2, Knope first introduced "Galentine's Day" and explained that the special day is to celebrate her female friends.

“What is Galentine's Day? It's only the best day of the year. Every February 13, my ladyfriends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home, and we just come and kick it, breakfast-style. Ladies celebrating ladies. It’s like Lilith Fair, minus the angst. Plus frittatas,” Knope explained to the camera.

Because Knope believed it was truly important to celebrate girl friends, she even reached out to congress to try and make the holiday official.

In the episode, Knope gathered her gal pals for brunch with waffles and mimosas.

To show her appreciation to her friends, Leslie also showered them with a couple of gifts - crocheted flower pens, handmade mosaics of their faces, and a personalized 5,000-word essay about why they are awesome.

The celebration was concluded with a story from Knope's mom, detailing a past, passionate love affair that apparently made The Notebook look like Saw V.

Pretty soon, the holiday caught on and became a beloved tradition that many women celebrate every year.

It has become so popular, much like Friends' "Friendsgiving" that even several companies make special products for the day or host Galentine's Day sales for their customers. Even Hallmark makes special "Happy Galentine's Day" cards to celebrate the beloved tradition.

Even Poehler herself and the other ladies in the show still celebrate Galentine's Day to this day. The actress guested on The Kelly Clarkson Show last year and shared how much she loves the tradition.

"I celebrate Galentine's Day all the time. And in fact, I'm spending Galentine's Day with Rashida Jones, Aubrey Plaza and Kathryn Hahn. We're having dinner tonight," Poehler told Kelly.

While it may have been started by a fictional character, the meaningful holiday has become one of the most popular unofficial holidays and it's definitely here to stay.