AP 06/27 2110 Ecclesia By WILLIAM C. CRUM Associated Press Writer SANDY, Ore. (AP) -- Th

AP 06/27 2110 Ecclesia

   By WILLIAM C. CRUM Associated Press Writer

   SANDY,  Ore.  (AP) -- The leader of a group that says it plans
to run a farm and athletic  camp  for  inner-city  children  said
Saturday  that  young  people need a "new kind of hero" and "I am
he."

   Eldridge Broussard Jr., a former college basketball star, made
his first public appearance since  about  a  group  of  about  70
children,  ranging from elementary to high school age, and adults
moved into the Portland area about two months ago.

   In an emotional news conference, Broussard told a  handful  of
reporters  gathered  at a farm near Mount Hood that his portrayal
as "a shadowy guru" in a national newsmagazine was  unfair.    He
insisted that the group was not a repressive church.

   Broussard,  also  is the founder of the Watts Christian Center
in  Los  Angeles,  said  his  organizations  were  dedicated   to
education.   But he asked how children could be expected to study
when they see "illiterate" professional athletes earning millions
of dollars.

   He said young people needed "a new kind of hero."

   He added: "I am he.  I can help our country.  I  believe  that
with all my heart."

   In  Los  Angeles,  relatives of members of the group said they
had been refused contact with their  loved  ones  and  questioned
whether   the  children  were  receiving  medical  attention  and
education.

   "I don't believe they're free.  I don't believe anyone  (that)
they're  free,"  said Richard Robnett, whose daughter, son-in-law
and two grandchildren are Ecclesia members.

   The parents appeared at  what  was  supposed  to  be  a  press
conference  with Broussard, but which was attended instead by his
28-year-old sister, Betty Brooks, while he remained in Oregon.

   The parents' squabbles are with their children, not the group,
Mrs.  Brooks said.

   The stated goal is to train children for  Olympic  competition
and  to  steer  them  away  from  drugs,  with  a  focus on tough
discipline and manual labor.

   Broussard, a National  Intercollegiate  Athletics  Association
All-America  basketball  player  at  Pacific University in Forest
Grove, said he was sure  he  could  win  the  confidence  of  his
neighbors,  some  of  whom have criticized the group publicly for
not revealing its plans.

   Some neighbors said they became suspicious of the  group  when
they  saw  young  children  jogging  in hailstorms and undergoing
other seemingly harsh training.