Manjit Sangha, 56, walked in public for the first time at her former workplace, Screwfix in Stafford, using prosthetic limbs after surviving sepsis and losing both her hands and feet.
Sangha's husband Kam also works night shifts at the Stafford location. Her colleagues at the firm are running a 100,000-step fundraiser in her honour and have raised more than £43,000 so far.
Robotic hands and future care
The money will be used to provide Manjit with robotic hands while a donor is sought. Kam said waiting for a donor could take years, but robotic hands would help her return to a "normal life" in the meantime.
Manjit was determined to get back to work, Kam added. "She has her ups and downs, but when she meets her colleagues and her managers come to see her – she couldn't have done it without the help of GXO, the managers and her colleagues giving her that encouragement," he said.
Colleague support and gratitude
Sangha said she "couldn't say it in words" how grateful she was to those who had supported her. "I appreciate that my colleagues care a lot. No matter what, they always stuck together as a team," she said.
"I was surprised when I heard they were going to do some charity for me, and I was very, very overwhelmed and very grateful to the people who've actually done all this fundraising for me."
Sangha said walking in public proved "you can do it, no matter what."
Jon Pearce, team manager at Screwfix, said she had shown "such spirit." "Raising money for her in this way, this is easy," he said. "This is an easy thing."
Sandra Markiewka, also a team manager at the firm, said Manjit was a "fantastic" colleague. "She always worked really, really hard," Markiewka said, adding that she was "extremely proud" of Manjit.