A University of Guelph student will be swimming across Lake Erie this weekend in the name of mental health.
Coralee Allaert will be leaving Sugarloaf Marina by boat early Saturday, going across to the United States, and then making the gruelling swim back to Canadian shores.
She says she was inspired after a mentor, Larry Optis, encouraged her while she was going through a dark time.
"Being alone and dealing with it is hard, but if you have people who are invested in you and want to see the best for you, you start seeing it yourself too. I still have a lot of things to work through, but the swim has definitely given me meaning and purpose that there is something out there."
She hopes she can inspire others by being open with her journey. "I think it's just a way for me to stay mentally fit and connected and put my story out there to inspire others to talk about mental health because there's a stigma around it. People don't talk about it."
She is hoping to raise $15,000 for Jack.org, a national organization providing mental health training to young people.