Most Sundays, the Kingfisher restaurant in Tucson is closed. But this Sunday, the restaurant known for its old-school decor and seafood entrees opened its doors to feed furloughed federal workers and their families.
If the federal government shutdown continues past Tuesday, it will be the longest shutdown in history. There are some signs a compromise between Democrats and Republicans is closer than in recent weeks.
Kingfisher owner Jacki Kuder said the idea for the Sunday lunch came to her while watching the news, where everything seemed “more and more depressing.”
“I just wanted to take action and actually do something,” she said. “I’m just one person, but I have a space, I have capacity.”
Her usual suppliers offered donations for the event. Kuder said cash donations will help her buy food for future meals, which she is opening up to anyone, not just federal workers. Almost her entire staff volunteered to work the Sunday lunch, she said, some with their families.
“I think I have more hands than I know what to do with,” Kuder said.
According to a social media post made after the event, the restaurant fed 450 people Sunday.
One of them was a furloughed federal employee with the U.S. Census Bureau in Tucson who was granted anonymity by AZPM News due to fear of retribution.
The employee has worked 18 years at the Census Bureau, which is part of the Department of Commerce. He called the furlough “extremely stressful” and said this shutdown has felt different from past ones.
“This administration does not go by laws or the norm,” he said.
The employee said he and his co-workers saw the effects of President Donald Trump’s threats to lay off furloughed federal workers firsthand: on Oct. 10, he said, they were fired through a so-called “reduction in force” email.
Five days later, a federal judge blocked the layoffs. The employee said he then got another email walking back the firing.
“There’s ways to do things, but don’t be so cruel about it,” he said of the Trump administration.
Another diner, Ken Beyersdorf, works with the U.S. Census Bureau, too.
A 20-year employee of the bureau, he called the current shutdown a “living hell.” He said the repeal of the layoffs were “good news.”
“But we’re still on furlough, so nothing tangible has really changed. We’re still waiting for our paychecks,” he said.
Beyersdorf is the vice president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 1207, which represents U.S. Census Bureau workers in Tucson. The AFGE is the largest labor union of federal workers and is typically a Democratic Party ally. But last week, the union’s president called on Democrats to end the shutdown on Republicans’ terms by passing a stopgap funding bill.
“Reopen the government immediately under a clean continuing resolution that allows continued debate on larger issues,” wrote AFGE National President Everett Kelley in an Oct. 27 press release.
Beyersdorf echoed his union’s stance.
“It’s really up to both sides in Congress to sit down, find common ground and do the right thing. Because there’s a lot of people that go from paycheck to paycheck just sitting there, wondering how they’re going to eat or pay their bills the next day,” he said.
“It’s a real shame that those kinds of people have control over most of what’s going on down here,” he said of Congress.
Beyersdorf said most of his co-workers have been with the Census Bureau between 15 and 30 years and called them “dedicated.”
“I’m very grateful for this event,” the anonymous employee said. “(When) things get better, I’ll be coming back here for them supporting us.”
For at least one volunteer, the feeling was mutual. Kuder’s son, 13-year-old Jackson Burhans, was working the front of the house during the meal.
“I feel grateful for the people who need the help and just want some backup in times of need,” Burhans said.
On Sunday, Kingfisher served a mesclun greens salad with carrots, onions and cucumbers, followed by penne pasta with tomato sauce, grilled chicken and roasted vegetables. Next weekend, chili and cornbread is on the menu.
SNAP uncertainty inspired Kuder to open Kingfisher to anyone needing a meal. At the moment, she has three more free meals planned:
+ Nov. 9 from 10 a.m. to noon. + Nov. 16 from noon to 2 p.m. + Nov. 27, Thanksgiving day, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Note: this story was updated to add an audio version.
