The maker of Twinkies and Wonder bread said Friday morning it's time to close its doors for good.
That means more than 18,000 employees, including roughly 160 in Tulsa, are now without jobs right before the holidays.
Bankrupt Hostess Brands announced Friday morning it's asking the court for permission to shut down and sell its assets.
According to the company, production of all of its brands has ceased. That caused a mad rush for people to buy as many boxes of products like Twinkies and Ding Dongs as they could before they're gone.
But for those losing their jobs, losing Twinkies was the least of their concerns.
"We're all pretty sad, because we've all known each other numerous years and seen people's kids grow," Doyle Briggs, an employee of Hostess' Wonder Bread bakery in Tulsa, said.
But after 26 years at Wonder Bread, it's time for Briggs to move on.
"It was a great place to work until, you know, corporate greed took it over," he said. "They wanted to put more money in their pockets."
"Shame on Hostess," he added.
And after 54 years of baking bread at corner of 11th Street and south Sheridan, many in Tulsa will be sensing the loss.
"The smells, you know," Briggs said. "People say oh, you work for Wonder Bread? It smells so great."
Starting Monday, 160 workers will have to start over.
"I would think there would be companies out there that would want good, quality people to come work for them," Briggs said.
"We'll land on our feet," Jeff Evans, also an employee at the Tulsa Wonder Bread bakery, said.
Evans already has landed on his feet, even after 20 years at the plant.
"Hopefully something better will come out of this," he said. "I saw the writing on the wall a year ago and started school. So, I just finished my last class last night, so perfect timing."
And while most of the others will have to file for unemployment, Evans and Briggs said none of the workers involved in union strike that led to Hostess's closing have any regrets.
"We still feel like we did the right thing," Briggs said. "We stood up and said we're not going to take what you're trying to shove down our throats."
"I think it was worth it."
Hostess employed more than 18,000 people at 36 bakeries across the country.
This was the second bankruptcy the company had gone through in the past 10 years.
