CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG STUDENTS ON WAY TO CHINESE SISTER CITY

By RICKI MORELL, Staff Writer

(CHARLOTTE) "Bye, Arnie!" Clara Epps had tears in her eyes as she called to her son. Independence High School student Arnie Epps smiled and put his arm around his friend Greg Slayton. Slayton, also an Independence student, reassured Arnie's mother. "We'll take care of each other," he said.
Amid cameras flashing, hugs - and in spite of themselves, a few tears – 21 high school students waved goodbye to their parents Thursday as they embarked on a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools first: a nine-day trip to mainland China.
Olympic High School student Jordan Hargrave looked like a man with a mission as he stood gripping one carry-on bag at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport's gate C19. He was waiting for Flight 7 to San Francisco, and then, on to China. The group is expected to arrive late today in Beijing, China`s capital, and the next morning head to Baoding, Charlotte`s sister city.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said Hargrave, a rising senior who had packed in his bag postcards and a Charlotte guidebook to give to the mayor of Baoding.
argrave was born in England, so he`s an old hand at foreign travel. But for Brian Schneiderman, a rising senior at West Charlotte, it was his first trip abroad.
"I've never sent him to a foreign country before - just the Bronx," said Brian's father, Mike Schneiderman, Charlotte Uptown Development Corp.'s executive director.
Supt. Peter Relic and his wife, Mary Jo, were there, taking pictures and saying goodbye to their son Peter, a Myers Park student. Relic arranged the visit when he met the mayor of Baoding at a reception in Charlotte earlier this school year. Relic said eventually he would like Chinese students to visit

Supt. Peter Relic and his wife, Mary Jo, were there, taking pictures and saying goodbye to their son Peter, a Myers Park student. Relic arranged the visit when he met the mayor of Baoding at a reception in Charlotte earlier this school year. Relic said eventually he would like Chinese students to visit Charlotte. The group will spend time in Baoding, wherethey will visit schools and meet students. They also will tour Beijing. Though the U.S. Embassy issued an "urgent notice" to Americans Thursday after China warned that terrorists from another country may be planning attacks on Americans living in Beijing, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Associate Supt. Chris Folk said Thursday afternoon the trip would continue as planned.
"We called the State Department and they told us they are not issuing an advisory that it is dangerous to be in China, but they are just saying that persons should be cautious," Folk said. "We see no danger at this time."
The students selected for the trip are: Meredith Brooks and Deidre Holmes of East Mecklenburg High School; Bret Smithey and Cindy Wade of Garinger High School; Mark Lattimore and Shun Young of Harding High School; Arnie Epps and Greg Slayton of Independence High School; Stephanie Dillard, Shannon McDowell and Peter Relic Jr. of Myers Park High School; Richard Holbert Jr. and Alfred Mele of North Mecklenburg High School; Akiva Gainey and Jordan Hargrave of Olympic High School; Suzanne Braun and Derek Julian of South Mecklenburg High School; Michael Caldwell and Brian Schneiderman of West Charlotte High School; and Nicole Kerr and James Jay Norman Jr. of West Mecklenburg High School.