After Gabby Douglas’ unpleasant performance last night on the uneven bars, reporters caught up with her, asking about her mother’s financial woes. In the media’s defense (not that they/we deserve it), the conversation began about her performance and then trickled into news about her mother’s (Natalie Hawkins) bankruptcy news. Gabby described her family life and shared that while growing up, her father Air Force Staff Sgt. Timothy Douglas served multiple deployments abroad.

“I just had to pray to God just to keep him safe and tell the angels to keep my dad safe and come home…It was hard for us growing up – my dad had left us, so he wasn’t really in the picture anymore. So, my mom had to front all these bills. My dad didn’t really pay the child support. He was short (on money)…It was definitely hard on my mom, taking care of me and my siblings.”

Read the full interview here. [NY Post, NBC]