Growing up in South Central L.A., two events marked Ruben Garcia’s childhood, events that sparked an interest in helping small busines owners from an early age.

The first one was the Watts riots of 1965, when he saw many small businesses looted and destroyed.

“I realized that some of these small business owners were left without anything almost overnight,” Garcia said. “I was so impacted by this that there was always a belief in my heart that all small business take great risks and can never be fully protected.”

The second event, and the most important one of the two in his life, was when his father had to sell the gas station he had bought with his savings after he couldn’t get a loan to expand his small business.

“He sold the business and never owned another for the rest of his life,” he said.

Inspired in great part by these two events, Ruben Garcia became District Director of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s San Diego District in 2006.

“My goal at SBA is to make sure everyone who needs help gets a chance to succeed,” he said, referring to the chance his father never had in continuing being a small business owner.

As the SBA district director in San Diego, Garcia said he is committed to helping small business owners start and expand their businesses. He has a special fondness for Latino business owners, who, like his father, sometimes miss out on opportunities because of misinformation.

“Our office is very involved in helping Latinos start and grow their businesses,” said Garcia, who is responsible for overseeing SBA’s financial and educational development programs for San Diego and Imperial Counties.

In addition to offering classes on SBA products and services in Spanish every other month, the San Diego District Office also works with all the local chambers of commerce who serve predominantly Hispanic-owned businesses in National City, Chula Vista, Otay Mesa, and San Ysidro.

Last year, the SDDO accounted for 775 loans totaling more than $342 million.

Garcia said that 25 of those loans totalling almost $8 million can be tracked to Latino-owned businesses, although he added that “many borrowers do not declare their ethnicity, so the number is not totally reflective.”

Garcia is particularly interested in helping Latinas start their own business, as part of President Obama’s recent announcement that was part of the Defense Authorization Act, in which there are new programs being developed to encourage women business owners and help them get more government contracts.

“Women entrepreneurs are growing at an unprecedented rate,” said Maria Contreras-Sweet, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration. “More than one in four U.S. companies is owned or led by a woman, and these firms employ more than 7.8 million Americans. Passage of the women’s small business provision in NDAA is a win for women entrepreneurs and a win for America. This will help women-owned small businesses gain equal access to federal contracting as they add jobs to the U.S. economy.”

Garcia said he wants to encourage more Latinos to reach out and visit their local SBA if their planning to start or expand their small business.

“Access to capital is always challenging, but we see more banks willing to loan than any time since 2008,” he said. “Come in and see us. Let us help you get certified to do contracting. Our 8(a) program is a nine year program that helps develop a small business.”

To learn more about the programs and loans available through the Small Business Administration, San Diego District, please visit www.sba.gov/ca/sandiego.