CENTRALIA — Mayor Tom Ashby will join the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) at 1 p.m. Wednesday to raise awareness of the Authority’s 1stHomeIllinois mortgage program.

The Mayor will encourage local residents who have not owned a home in three years to take advantage of the program.

1stHomeIllinois gives buyers $7,500 in down payment assistance to buy a home in Marion County and a secure, 30-year fixed rate mortgage.

The program will help stimulate affordable home ownership in 10 Illinois counties, including Marion, and drive economic growth for communities.

Ashby, along with Peter Selke, director of Illinois Hardest Hit Program, a realtor representative and Sherri Hall, who bought her home recently using down payment assistance from the IHDA, will meet at 1 p.m. Wednesday in front of Hall’s home at 519 East Calumet Street in Centralia.