ATLANTA – After 65 years of ties to Delta Air Lines, Delta Employees Credit Union has a new moniker that it says better reflects its current field of membership. The $2.6 billion credit union has changed its name to Delta Community Credit Union (DCCU), effective Oct. 1. The news comes a few weeks after Delta Air Lines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and an announcement that it would cut up to 9,000 jobs to save the troubled airline $3 billion each year. "The name change in no way implies a distancing from the credit union's original sponsor, Delta Air Lines," said Rick Foley, DCCU president/CEO. "As we began expanding our membership base to new groups beyond Delta employees, it became apparent that the credit union's name needed to be modified." Of DCCU's 163,000 members, "active" Delta Air Lines employees make up 33% or 53,790 of its field of membership. DCCU had been considering a name change for more than a year. As a state-chartered credit union, it does not have the option of converting to a community charter or a trade, industry or profession (TIP) charter. "We anticipate that this one word change will allow for greater acceptance by non-Delta members and potential members, while keeping the tie to our original sponsor group," Foley said. The credit union currently serves about 100 select employee groups. Letters to members telling them why the name changed have been sent and DCCU is expecting a "positive response" since "the name is actually more inclusive." Meanwhile, DCCU is building four new branches in the metro-Atlanta area within the next 12 months. Additionally, it relocated its Dallas and Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky branches to community locations. With more than 55% of DCCU's membership based in the Atlanta metropolitan area, the credit union's five-year plan is to become a "metro Atlanta-centric credit union," Foley said. Signage for branches currently being constructed will reflect the new name as they are opened in November 2005 and in the first quarter of 2006. Signage in other branches and on marketing materials will be transitioned over the next six to nine months, according to the credit union. In February 1940, Delta Employees Credit Union was organized by eight Delta employees in Atlanta, with a stake of $45 in share capital. Within a month after its charter was granted, the first board of directors was composed and voted that membership was open to all Delta employees. By the end of 1940 assets had grown to approximately $2,000. In 1960, the board was granted a renewal of the credit union's charter. By 1983, assets exceeded $200 million, a first for any credit union in Georgia, according to DCCU, and it has been the largest credit union in the state since then. In July of 1994, the credit union adopted a policy of "Once a member, always a member," thus eliminating the stipulation that an individual had to be an active Delta employee to join. [email protected]