Sapulpa Family Feeling Impact One Month After Government Shutdown

SAPULPA -- The longest government shutdown in U.S. history is still being felt in Green Country.

A Sapulpa family of a TSA worker says they are still recovering, a month after the shutdown ended.

The Moody family says the shutdown caused them to put their dogs, Lulu and Ella, up for adoption.

"They were our babies,” Allie Moody said. “And they're gone.”

Allie and her husband Johnathan have two sons: nine-year-old Matthew, and six-year-old Hayden.

"The boys were just absolutely devastated that we had to, but we couldn't afford to feed them anymore or take them to the vet,” Moody said.

She said like many other families with federal workers, dinner was on their table during the shutdown thanks to food pantries and food stamps.

"I felt bad, but we needed it desperately,” Moody said. “We couldn't afford detergent. We couldn't afford milk."

And while the shutdown is over, she says the impact is not.

"The shutdown isn't over in our hearts,” Moody said. “The damage is still there. We're still recuperating. The wound is still open."

Johnathan, who could not speak with us for this story because of a non-disclosure agreement, has worked for the TSA for 17 years and loves his job. Allie said her husband has received his back pay, but they're still catching up on bills.

“We will rise again, and we will get through this, for sure,” she said. “It's just taking a very long time."

This is the third shutdown they have been through together.

"We were concerned the last times. This one, we were terrified,” Moody said.

The family decided not to adopt their dogs back, even after they recover.

"I would be very scared that it would happen again, and I wouldn't be able to take care of them,” Moody said.

Moody said she thinks it will be another month or two before the family is back on their feet.