About Us
Board of Directors
Robert Benson - Founder and President of the Board
Robert founded Arms of Love International in 1999 with the first home in Nicaragua and orchestrated its growth and subsequent partnerships in the Philippines, Mexico, Senegal and Brazil. Robert received his bachelor’s degree from San Jose State University and J.D. from the University of California, Berkley. As a partner at the law firm of Hogan & Hartson, Robert’s practice focuses on complex intellectual property litigation for high-profile firm clients. In 2007, Robert initiated and organized a ground-breaking Children-at-Risk Conference in Anaheim, California, which featured 40 speakers from 12 nations and drew over 400 attendees from nearly 200 different churches and ministries. Robert, his wife Kristen and their four children live in Foothill Ranch, CA and host a home church that is part of Vineyard at Home, a small network of house churches in Southern California.
Dr. Steven D. Bagley - General Director
Dr. Bagley joined Arms of Love International’s Board of Directors in 2002. Steve has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and Christian education from Azusa Pacific University. He received his master’s degree in Christian education from Talbot Seminary and received his doctorate in marriage and family therapy from California Graduate Institute. Steve and his wife, Linda J. Bagley, M.A., LMFT, founded Marriage and Family Matters Counseling. In addition to marital and pastoral counseling, Steve provides business consulting and executive coach services. He also served as a church pastor for twenty years. He and Linda have been international guest lecturers in China, Japan and Mexico. He is a board member of God’s Families International Adoption Agency, Inc. and the Vineyard Community Mission Network, Inc. Linda and Steve have two married adult children and five grandchildren.
David Brobeck - Secretary of the Board
Dave has been involved in Arms of Love since 2008 and serves on both the international board and the Arms of Love Nicaragua board. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California in 1966 and his law degree from California Western School of Law in San Diego in 1969. Dave is a founding partner in the Santa Ana, California-based law firm of Beam, Brobeck, West, Borges & Rosa LLP, specializing in civil litigation. He has volunteered in many Christian ministries over the years, and has been an advisor to other non-profit organizations. He also has been a board member of the Reasons to Believe ministry for more than 15 years. Dave and his wife Gaye reside in Dana Point, California, near their son David, daughter Holly, and three grandchildren.
Jenn Gaskin - General Director
Jenn has served on the International Board for Arms of Love since January 2006. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1989 and taught Math at San Francisco’s University High School before starting a small tutoring business. A long-time member of the Mid-Peninsula Vineyard Christian Church in San Carlos, California, Jenn has overseen the children’s ministry, taught parenting classes, and currently oversees the family ministries with her husband John. John & Jenn were married in 1989 and currently live in Redwood City where they home school their five active children.
Colin Snow - General Director
Colin has been with Arms of Love since January, 2006 and serves both on the international board and Arms of Love Philippines board. He received a bachelor’s degree from the Evangel University in Missouri, studied theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and holds an M.B.A. from Florida Atlantic University. Colin works in the enterprise software business for SAP, specializing in marketing and positioning. Throughout his career Colin has served on the boards of other non-profit organization such as Theodyssey.org and Silver-Creek Church Community in San Jose, California. He has also served as a Big Brother and has been trained in Clinical Pastoral Education. Colin resides in San Jose and his daughter Jaime attends university in England.
Edward Paul “Bud” Skibitzke - General Director
Bud has been involved with Arms of Love-Nicaragua since 2003 and became a member of the board of directors of both Arms of Love-Nicaragua and Arms of Love-International in 2007. He has been involved with missions work in Nicaragua since 1989, and now devotes much of his time to abandoned and abused Nicaraguan children. Bud resides in Pacific Palisades, California with his adopted Nicaraguan daughter, Elizabeth. He is president of both Edward Paul Skibitzke, Architects and BarroNica Building Products, Inc.
Jenna Stepp - General Director
Jenna has served on the international board for Arms of Love since 2008.Upon graduating from Oral Roberts University in 2001 with a degree in International Business, Jenna and her husband Shawn became youth pastors at a Vineyard church in Massachusetts. They also served as the regional youth directors for the Vineyard churches of the east. In 2006, she was one of the teachers for the Vineyard College of Mission’s Children in Crisis track, during which she and her family lived at the Arms of Love home in Bohol for part of the training. Jenna is currently the youth pastor for the Vineyard church in Lewiston, Maine. She is the administrator and event planner for the Vineyard East Region and enjoys equipping local churches to engage in the issues of justice and mercy in a practical way. Jenna has 2 young daughters and loves to hear children laugh.