CPIC Monique’s Caring Hands Center, the first of twenty NGO’s establish within the Caribbean, is the brain child of Dawn Stewart, founder/ CEO of CPIC Inc., she officially opened CPIC Monique’s Caring Hands Center in August 2003. The center is named after Monique Gildarhie, a 24 year old Guyanese young woman in the peak of her life who died in 2002 from AIDS. Stewart was a personal friend and mentor of Monique who died of AIDS in 2002 and was a member of the support group of persons living with AIDS in Guyana. Concerned about the type of care being provided to HIV/AIDS persons, Domestic and Child Abuse. Ms Stewart was determined to find funds and support for her fellow Guyanese to include her goal of procuring a building as a the safe place for persons in need of emergency protection. Monique’s offers support center programs designed to meet the unique needs of families infected with or affected by HIV and AIDS, Domestic violence, Child abuse, Human trafficking, Poverty and Dysfunctional families while at the same promoting Healthy Lifestyles. The first goal of the program are to increase the number of persons who receive voluntary HIV counseling and testing amongst sexually active persons, pregnant women while at the same time promoting abstinence, condom usage and monogamous relationships. Second goal is to ensure behavioral changes through culturally based training addressing Obeah, Voodoo and other superstitious beliefs, the roles of male and female in relationship building and sexual negotiation skills.
