APca 06/23 1927 Ecclesia By WILLIAM McCALL Associated Press Writer SANDY, Ore. (AP) -- T

APca 06/23 1927 Ecclesia

   By WILLIAM McCALL Associated Press Writer

   SANDY,  Ore.  (AP) -- The Ecclesia Athletic Association, a Los
Angeles-based group that  has  moved  at  least  100  members  to
Oregon,  has  been  falsely  portrayed  by the media as a cult, a
spokeswoman said Tuesday.

   The group, founded by former college basketball star  Eldridge
Broussard  Jr.,  is  trying  to  promote  a national athletic and
education program  for  inner-city  children,  said  Carolyn  Van
Brunt.

   But  she  declined  to  discuss  the program, saying Broussard
would announce the details during  a  news  conference  scheduled
Saturday morning in Los Angeles.

   "We are  not  a  cult,"  Ms.  Van Brunt said. "I think we have
been represented in toto out of context."

   The group has set up a temporary training facility at a  small
farm near  this  rural community in the shadow of Mount Hood.  At
least 100 children were  camped  there  Tuesday,  but  they  were
preparing to return to Los Angeles for the news conference.

   Ms.   Van  Brunt  said  the Oregon news conference was hastily
staged to respond to fears about Ecclesia.  She refused to answer
most questions, however, and did not  say  whether  the  children
would be returning.

   Broussard  played  for the University of Oregon during 1971-72
before transferring to Pacific University in Forest Grove,  where
he  was  a  National  Association  of  Intercollegiate  Athletics
All-American.  He tried out for the Portland Trail Blazers of the
NBA but never made the team.

   Broussard was in the midst of an 80-day fast Tuesday  and  was
not at the  news  conference.   Ms.  Van Brunt declined to reveal
his whereabouts, saying only that "Eldridge  is  on  the  scene,"
and, "He is the leader."

   She  blamed  "disenfranchised"  Ecclesia  members for starting
rumors about the group, which claims to be training children  for
the Olympics.

   Broussard,  the  founder  of the Watts Christian Center in Los
Angeles, has said he formed Ecclesia to turn children  away  from
drugs  and  crime,  motivating  them through tough discipline and
athletic training aimed at qualifying for Olympic competition.

   The training regimen, which includes a vow of poverty, centers
on running, jumping jacks, push-ups and manual labor.

   The children are required to fill out an application that asks
them to "declare all of my ambitions, desires,  past  and  future
commitments,  relationships, expectations, assets, gifts, talents
and  connections  under  the  total  control  of  Eldridge   John
Broussard Jr."

   The  application  also  reads: "All my decisions -- financial,
social, recreational, educational, dietary, romantic and any  not
mentioned  above, must pass his scrutiny and obtain his approval.
I relinquish even the rights of decision-making."

   When asked about the form, Ms.  Van Brunt said  only  that  it
was  a  matter  of  public  record and necessary for the group to
demonstrate that hard work and perserverance  can  help  children
transcend cultures.

   Neighbors  who  attended the news conference said they did not
want the farm to become a  national  headquarters  for  Ecclesia,
citing concerns about the water supply and zoning requirements.

   "We're concerned that they have breached due process in zoning
and  have  simply moved in," said Jack Strand, who lives near the
farm.

   He also criticized what he said was the group's "militaristic"
attitude, including having  the  children  line  up  in  rows  at
attention every day.

   "They  say  they  want  to  be  the  `National  Guard'  of the
Olympics," Strand said. "I don't  understand  why  that  type  of
mentality is necessary."

   Ms.   Van  Brunt refused to comment about the group's training
regimen or its purpose.

   She did say, however, that the group does not feel persecuted.
Members of Ecclesia are black and their neighbors are white.

   "We haven't had any burning crosses on the  lawn,"  Ms.    Van
Brunt said.

   Becky  Hawley, another neighbor, said residents of the area do
not consider race an issue.

   "They're the only ones who can benefit from the racism issue,"
Ms.  Hawley said. "If they can set up something  like  this  here
than that means any group can start operating on somebody's front
lawn."

   Ms.   Van  Brunt  said the group is seeking a temporary permit
from Clackamas County allowing Ecclesia to set up tents and other
facilities.  She said the outcome of a zoning  hearing  scheduled
July 8 will determine whether the group stays in Sandy.

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