BATON ROUGE, La. – Dow Louisiana Federal Credit Union recently introduced its new business lending program to the community by sponsoring a small business seminar to educate local entrepreneurs and decision-makers about the different resources that are available to help their small and medium-sized businesses grow. The $120 million DLFCU's special guest speaker, Eugene Cornelius, the SBA's New Orleans district director, spoke about the variety of information and research available to new and existing business owners including 7(a), 504, and Community Express loan programs. Tony Martinez, director of the Louisiana State University Small Business Development Center talked about the assistance available to businesses seeking SBA and shared information on the resources that his office has at its disposal, ranging from reviewing a potential SBA loan request to creating a viable business plan. Joanna Bruno and Brad Crosley, both from JR Bruno & Associates, a Glendora, Calif.-based business lending consulting firm, were on hand to discuss all the lending options open to businesses and how DLFCU could help the local business community by providing one-on-one consulting and bring a full solution to business owners. DLFCU recently launched its business lending division that includes loan products for commercial real estate; lines of credit; furniture, fixtures and equipment; operating capital; and a Visa business credit card. Formed in 1972 by Dow Chemical employees, the credit union currently serves more than 13,000 members and was named the 2004 Federal Credit Union of the Year by NAFCU for credit unions under $150 million in assets.