Garringer, a 37-year-old maintenance worker at the General Services Administration, scrambled on to the second level of the parking garage to see much of the building he had worked in for years had been demolished.

"I was trying to get into the area where the day care should have been, but the back wall wasn't there and neither was the floor," Garringer said. "There was so much dust it was almost pitch black sometimes, and there were things falling from the building."

On April 19, 1995 a truck bomb exploded at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people and injuring hundreds more. While that day has faded for some, it is still fresh for Garringer, who moved to Tampa Bay, Florida to escape those painful memories.

"My wife can tell you I still have nightmares, especially each year when the anniversary gets here," Garringer said. "It's just a trigger that brings back so many painful memories."

On the 20th anniversary of the largest domestic terror attack in American history, federal employees and retirees are looking back on an attack driven by anti-government sentiment, simultaneously honoring those who died and hoping it never happens again.

"Federal employees are just like everybody else. We are just people," Garringer said. "Everyone used to say we will never forget what happened in Oklahoma city but I think they are."

But the horrific nature of the attack left a permanent dent in the federal psyche –that federal employees could become the targets of terrorists, said Jon Adler, president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.

"I think it was a severe reminder to us of the vulnerability that exists here in the homeland," Adler said.

He said the attack was a reminder of the vulnerability of federal buildings and employees, and that attack created a heightened sense of awareness about safety and terrorism that continues to this day.

A rescue worker at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, pauses with fellow rescue crews for a moment of silence at 9:02AM 26 Apr, in rememberance of those killed in 19 Apr car bombing attack at the building. AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read POOL/AFP/Getty Images)

A rescue worker at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, pauses with fellow rescue crews for a moment of silence at 9:02 AM on April 26, 1995 in remembrance of those killed in the attack at the building on April 19.

Photo Credit: AFP, AFP/Getty Images

But a growing lack of confidence in law enforcement and heightened anti-federal worker feelings by members of the public are a cause for worry, he said.

"We are living in a time of heightened and growing anti-federal government sentiment. We need to be ready, we need to be prepared," Adler said.

The federal government has since done a lot to increase the security of federal buildings, but there has not been much progress eliminating the anti-government sentiment that led to the horrific attack, according to J. David Cox, president of the American Federation of Government Employees.

He said there has been a concerning surge in violent and often attacks on federal employees in recent years, which only serve to highlight the danger federal workers face.

"The lessons from the Oklahoma City bombing are as important today as they were 20 years ago: words matter," Cox said. "Politicians and political commentators should think twice before demonizing federal workers, who are proud to work for their country and deliver the public goods Americans rely on."

On the day of the bombing, Sylvia Hernandez, who worked as GSA's Telecommunications Operations Branch Manager, was in a conference call with employees when she heard the federal building had been bombed.

An emergency response official, Hernandez grabbed her personal belongings and headed to Oklahoma City within the hour. She arrived a short time later to help direct and manage the recovery of communication services for agencies and Federal Emergency Management Agency workers responding to the blast.

A rescue crew searches for bodies 20 April in the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City. The death toll in the 19 April car bombing has risen to 52. AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read POOL/AFP/Getty Images)

A rescue crew searches for bodies the day after the bombing at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City.

Photo Credit: AFP, AFP/Getty Images

The agency had lost two employees, Steven Curry and Michael Loudenslager, while many who survived the blast suffered severe injuries – as well as emotional scars they carry with them to this day, Hernandez wrote.

"The events of that day remain with me," she said.

The Oklahoma City Bombing was an act of rage against the government and the federal employees who serve it, said National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen Kelley.

"The Oklahoma City bombing was not a random act," President Kelley said. "It was a deliberate attack on federal employees and serves as a reminder of the need to foster respect for government service and federal workers."

The site of the bombing is now a museum and memorial to honor the victims and educate the public about that day, while remember that federal employees are made up of people from communities across America.

"After 20 years, federal employees continue to persevere. But we never forget," Kelley said.

Garringer, now 57, runs three buildings in Tampa Bay, and he makes sure to run a variety of drills to help employees cope with emergency situations, including a bomb. And even as he sees the public beginning to forget what happened on that day, it will be something he will remember for the rest of his life.

"I don't think we ever get over it, we just find a way to live with it," Garringer said. "Everyone gets scars throughout their lives, we've just got to support one another if we want to get through."

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