Which holiday does Jake associate with his father's absence?

Jake Peralta associates Thanksgiving with his father's absence.

Jake initially dislikes Thanksgiving because the holiday reminds him that his father, Roger Peralta, was often absent during his childhood. In the season-one episode “Thanksgiving,” Jake explains that his mother had to work and his father was away, leaving him with painful memories rather than the warm family tradition many people associate with the holiday.

That history helps explain Jake's defensive humor and his reluctance to participate in Thanksgiving celebrations. The episode places his personal discomfort alongside the precinct's attempt to celebrate together, gradually showing that the Nine-Nine can provide him with the sense of family he did not consistently receive at home.

Thanksgiving remains a recurring family theme. Later episodes bring Jake's parents and Amy's parents into the same holiday setting, including “Two Turkeys,” where parental tensions and competing family traditions become comic conflict. Christmas and Halloween appear elsewhere in the series, but Thanksgiving is the holiday specifically tied to Roger Peralta's absence and Jake's childhood resentment.