Church Staff

Chris Holck grew up on a farm in Iowa and thought that would be his life. He majored in Agricultural Banking and Finance at Iowa State University (where he met future wife Kathleen; they married in 1978) and took a job in that field upon graduating. The next few years saw the couple pursuing careers (Kathleen worked in early child development and parental education) and starting their family. Then, before taking over the family farm, Chris spent a year fulfilling another dream – earning a certificate in Biblical Studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. After a few years of farming, he felt pulled to full-time ministry and took a youth pastor position in Minneapolis, Minn. Simultaneously, he began pursuing an Master of Divinity from Bethel Seminary in nearby St. Paul, graduating in May 1990; the following month, he was ordained in the Evangelical Free (E-Free) Church of America.

From 1991 to 2002, Chris pastored at Faith E-Free Church in Austin, Minn., and then was called to lead a church in Spirit Lake, Iowa. While there, Chris noticed that churches in general seemed to lack understanding in how to best serve one segment of their congregations – older adults. Feeling a passion to change that dynamic, in 2008, he began contracting with the E-Free denomination as a consultant and speaker, traveling all over the country to help churches promote new ways of engaging and empowering their “Encore Generation.”

In 2010, Bill and Mary Ann Hicks of The Villages were interested in planting a church in their area, and called E-Free headquarters in Minneapolis. Chris and Bill met; then he and Kathleen agreed to visit Florida; and after much prayer and faith, they moved to The Villages in January 2012. Live Oaks Community Church held its first worship service just one month later. Chris believes his mission here is to share the Gospel, and at the same time, guide older adults to live a purposeful, balanced second half of life that honors God – to “play hard, pray hard, and finish well.”

In their free time, Chris and Kathleen enjoy sports, both watching and playing (golf and pickleball), dining out; and traveling – especially to see their three married children and six grandkids, or relax at their “other home” by Lake Okoboji, in Iowa.

James Armstrong became Executive Pastor for Live Oaks Community Church in July 2022. He brings a rich, diverse background in ministries around the world.

A decorated U.S. Air Force veteran, James served under four different presidents in ministry to airmen, sailors, and soldiers both at home and overseas in Operation Just Cause, as well in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He was an adjunct instructor and professor at colleges in Maryland and Texas, teaching courses ranging from Philosophy and Religion to Management and Criminal Justice. He also taught Military Strategic Studies at the U.S. Air Force Academy; and was pastor of The Hill Fellowship, the Academy’s largest worship service. James has served as both an associate and senior pastor at a dozen churches stateside and abroad; a trained crisis chaplain and counselor; and led dozens of marriage, youth, and single ministry retreats during the course of his 30-year ministry career. Committed to investing in the church on both a local and international level, in 2019 he founded Becoming Missional, an organization aimed at training and equipping leaders and churches primarily in developing nations. His heart and passion, he says, is “for serving God and His people, those living and serving around the globe.”

A military kid, James grew up in both the U.S. and Europe; he became a Christian as a teen at a Baptist camp in Texas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Christian Ministry from East Texas Baptist University (where he met his wife, Wendy), as well as an Master of Divinity in Biblical Languages from Southwestern Seminary; a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership from George Fox University; and is completing a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Midwestern Theological Seminary. The Armstrongs have three grown children – Austin, Alysse, and Ashlea.

Pastor Bob Page came to Live Oaks Community Church in January 2013 after serving 37 years in pastoral ministry in the Evangelical Free Church, most recently as senior pastor of a church in Crystal Lake, Ill. He has also served the denomination as a district superintendent in the states of Nebraska and Kansas. A graduate of Kent State University with a degree in journalism, Bob had a storied career as a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper reporter and editor prior to answering the call to serve the Lord in ministry.

“Pastor Bob” holds both Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministries degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. His responsibilities include shepherding those among the congregation who primarily attend worship services at the Woodridge Campus; and serving as one of the church’s able contingent of preaching pastors.

In 2009, Bob was widowed when the Lord called home his beloved wife of 41 years, Linda. But six years later, on December 31, 2015, God opened a new door, and he was blessed in marriage to Vickie Hubbard, whom he had met through Live Oaks. Bob has three children (two daughters and a son), and five grandchildren who are scattered throughout the Midwest; he and Vickie visit them whenever opportunity allows.  Since moving to The Villages, walking and playing golf have become his main recreational activities of choice, along with enjoying gatherings with Vickie’s family, many of whom live nearby.

Dr. Sam Benson and his wife Cheri have been in ministry for more than half a century. He began preaching the Gospel in 1967 and has served not only as a pastor and evangelist, but also as a missionary, traveling all over the world with the message of biblical truth. He and Cheri have led several congregations through major expansions, pastoring churches in Ohio, Minnesota, Washington, and other states. Today, as part of LOCC’s pastoral team since 2018, they are more excited about the future than ever before.

Sam’s inspired preaching stirs the hearts of his audiences to purposed-filled action. Cheri is an insightful teacher of Scripture, an entrepreneur, and a certified Life Coach. She is in demand as a women’s conference speaker and mentors both business and ministry professionals around the globe. Sam holds a bachelor’s degree in Biblical Studies from North Central University in Minneapolis, and on January 21, 2001, at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., was awarded the Ecclesiastical Degree of Doctor of Divinity (DD) by the Mid-Atlantic Conference of the Methodist-Episcopal Church and the National Clergy Council.

Sam and Cheri met at college in Minnesota and married in June 1969. They have two grown sons, two daughters-in-law, and five grandchildren.

Holding both Master of Music and a Doctor of Arts degrees from Ball State University in Muncie, Ind., as well as a B.A. from Warner University in Lake Wales, Florida, Steve Clarke has been leading worship in a variety of capacities since 1989. He became LOCC’s full-time Worship Pastor in March 2021.

Steve’s experience ranges all the way from conducting large choirs and full orchestras to leading music for retreats and other smaller worship venues. Having served in a variety of denominations, his bandwidth of musical styles is broad, incorporating traditional hymns and drawing from the last 50 years of praise music and current worship styles. “Coming to Live Oaks seems like the most generous way our Lord would favor me,” Steve says. “At Live Oaks I have sensed a deep love for Christ and a deep desire to pour every ounce of energy into seeing God’s kingdom flourish.”

Steve was born and raised in North Carolina; he and his wife Debbie met in college and have been married since 1988. They are the proud parents of six children – Rohman, Monee, Sophia, Whitney Morgan, Thatcher, and Allister. In his free time, Steve counts reading and attending his kids’ sports events as his favorite pastimes.

Tom Taylor joined the LOCC staff as full-time Care Pastor in February 2022. An accredited Bible counselor, Tom is a member of the Association of Christian Biblical Counselors and served on the development team for the Hope Denver Biblical Counseling Center. His ministry roles since becoming ordained in 1982 include 12 years pastoring a church in St. Augustine, Fla.; two years pastoring a church in Lakeland, Fla.; and a stint as a Christian educator teaching both computer and Bible classes to high school students.

As care pastor, Tom’s ministry focus includes visiting those who are ill; leading the prayer ministry; overseeing ministry for the care center and developing additional care center outreaches; and reaching out to those in the church who are shut-ins. Tom also co-teaches “Equipped to Care” classes, and he and his wife Pat serve as “The Grove Shepherds,” welcoming and ministering to the Live Oaks attendees who worship outdoors from their cars and golf carts each weekend.

Tom is a native Floridian; Pat moved to the state as a child, they’ve been married since August 1971. The couple moved to The Villages in 2020 after nearly two decades living near their daughter in Colorado. They both thrive on having a ministerial focus. “My heart is shepherding people,” Tom says, pointing to Isaiah 46:4 as his theme verse: “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”

Jim Erb has always maintained a passion to “equip believers for works of service as together we fulfill the Great Commission.” He joined the LOCC staff as pastor of mobilization in January 2022, after serving 21 years as lead pastor of the Evangelical Free Church in Lena, Ill. Over the course of his ministry, Jim served in pastorates in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Illinois; his travels have taken him to five continents and 23 countries to train, equip, and strengthen fellow Christ followers for outreach and discipleship. Along the way, he has trained pastors and leaders in the U.S., Kenya, India, and Southeast Asia; led ministry teams to the Philippines, Ecuador, and Honduras; and guided missionary teams in France, Thailand, and Indonesia.

“I eagerly anticipate mobilizing the people of Live Oaks so that people locally, nationally, and around the world may experience God’s wonderful grace in more vivid display,” Jim says. He holds a Doctor of Ministry and a Master of Divinity from Trinity International Divinity School, and a Bachelor of Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. He and his wife Suzy have three grown children and four grandchildren, who live in Boone, N.C.; Washington, D.C.; and Grand Rapids, Mich. When he’s not mobilizing people for ministry, Jim enjoys bicycling, cheering on the Chicago Bears, and sampling coffees from around the world.