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The Journey East II group is on their way to China!
 With a 3 a.m. wake-up call, the first
group of students began arriving in the motel lobby shortly after 3:30 a.m.. Tom and Ann collected the kids and all the baggage and filled two shuttles to the airport. Some parents said
goodbye to their kids yesterday, others said goodbye this morning. The rest of us went to the airport.
See more photos.
At the airport the kids waited patiently (mostly because they were so sleepy!) while each one was signed in and baggage checked. Many parents were on
hand and we hung out with the group for about an hour during this check-in period.
Once everyone was successfully checked in, about 5:30 a.m., Tom moved the group through the gate. Because of the tight security, the parents on
hand each said final goodbyes to their kids. An emotionally charged moment for everyone. This was the last time we would see our kids for a month. We
watched as the group moved through the checkpoint and out of site.
You all would have been quite proud to see how well-mannered and organized these kids were during their stay at the motel and their processing at the
airport. The day before, Principal Bill Lincoln spoke to the kids and simply said, “I know you all will . . . make us proud!” So far, they have done just that.
About ten of us (parents) stayed at the airport until the plane took off. Since we couldn’t be in the gate area with the kids, we sat in the main terminal. Those were a long two hours. At 7:30 a.m., the plane taxied from the terminal
and we all watched as the plane took off and disappeared into the sky. Another emotional moment.
This moment was an end and beginning. The end of several months of preparing for the trip. And the beginning of a long four weeks!
We all said goodbye to each other and agreed we would meet back here in a month!
You can follow the flights by going to: www.united.com and in the “Flight Status” box, type the flight numbers:
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