Coles Forster store support manager Penni Darcy has made a triumphant return from climbing Australia's highest peak in an effort to raise money for mental health awareness.
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On March 9, Ms Darcy, along with 20 Coles employees from around New South Wales, joined a group of 40 people climbing Mount Kosciuszko for the R U OK? foundation.
"It was the hardest thing I've ever done but the best," she said.
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The group set off from the base at 8am and reached the summit at 1pm, with Ms Darcy and four other Coles managers taking the harder and longer 'Main Range' track to the top and "feeling every bit of it."
"It was an absolute ball," she said.
"We were exhausted but really, really happy."
The scenery was amazing.
- Penni Darcy
The expedition raised $50,000 for the R U OK? foundation, with the Coles group contributing $20,000 and Ms Darcy chipping in $1,600 thanks to the donations she received from the local community.
"I got more support than I could've imagined," she said.
"A lot of customers would stop me and ask how I was going with it. It was so lovely."
Most importantly for Ms Darcy, she believed she'd achieved her goal of raising awareness of mental health issues among her colleagues and the community, with lots of people coming to her to enquire about the foundation.
"I got to talk about what R U OK? does and how they help," she said.
With this year's expedition behind her, Ms Darcy is already looking towards 2020 and is hoping to bring more people along with her and raise even more money.
And while it was all about getting behind a great cause, Ms Darcy said the benefits for her own mental health were hugely rewarding as well.
"It was a really humbling experience," she said.
"I was quite taken back at what I achieved."
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