Yankee All White, the brand was made popular in Guyana by Ruschelle Cameron and her Mother, Carol Wills.
The annual Yankee All White Boat Cruise, first held in April 2006, was hosted to bring awareness to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Guyana.
Since then, the brand as cemented its place in the hearts and minds of those who have those living with and/or have lost loved ones to HIV/AIDS.
The journey started when Ruschelle, who after losing her aunt to HIV/AIDS, sought a way to help other people deal with their lost. And at the same time, she wanted to educate herself and her community on how to prevent contracting HIV/AIDS.
Yankee All White, now offers counselling, social events, physical care and other methods of care and support.
The years 2021 and 2022, saw no physical boat cruise, the traditional activity hosted in aid of HIV/AIDS Awareness. What replaced the cruise was ‘ANCHOR’ an occasion which was hosted on land.
In 2021, ANCHOR was hosted Turkeyen, Georgetown, on the lower East Coast of Demerara. That Day Party was facilitated due to the many COVID19 restrictions in place at the time.
In 2022, the Day and Night version of ANCHOR, was hosted in East Ruimveldt, Georgetown, at the Yankee All White Center.
The day started with the ORAL PRESENTATIONS of researched and written essays by children, 7 to 13 years old.
The night ended with the usual party featuring one-man bands and popular deejays.
The Promotions Group remains focused on delivering occasions of sexual and reproductive health awareness, support and care-giving. And a major part of their delivery strategy is get the entire family involved.
In 2023, 16th of April, the 17th edition and the return of the Boat Cruise on the Essequibo River will be hosted.
In 2019, the estimated number of people living with HIV in Guyana amounted to 8.7 thousand, up from 8.2 HIV-positive patients in the previous year. In 2018, the lower estimation limit for HIV-positive patients in Guyana was 7.2 thousand and its upper estimation limit was 9.4 thousand.
