Ben joined PLI as the Global Executive Director in 2024.  Prior Ben served as Associate Provost and Associate Professor of Practical Theology at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.  He also served as the pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Boca Raton, FL, and Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Gainesville, GA.  A few of Ben’s interests are the history of the New Testament and the early church pre-Constantine, the intersection of church and society, and pastoral/congregational leadership.  Ben and his wife Celina, who works in elementary education, have two sons and make their home in St, Louis, MO.

Sherrah has been on the PLI team since 2014, serving as editor and copywriter for The Roundtable, and has been a post-seminary and D2MC coach. She lives in San Lorenzo, California, where her husband Matt is a pastor. They love hosting friends and encouraging ministry leaders and their families, and Sherrah especially enjoys connecting with other pastors’ wives. She also homeschools their two kids, takes on occasional freelance editing or writing projects, and can usually be found with a cup of tea and a book in hand.

Jennifer is passionate about creating spaces that empower others to live courageously in Jesus. She began as a PLI coach in 2015, joined the PLI development team in 2016, and has served as Leadership Essentials Coaching & Content Leader since 2020. Jennifer is married to Matt, a pastor near Flint, MI. When not asking thought-provoking questions, she can be found reading, knitting, showing up to her four kids’ sports and activities, swimming laps, or looking for ways to engage in meaningful dialogue.

Dr. Gerald “Jerry” Kieschnick joined PLI in 2025 as Presidential Ambassador where he brings decades of trusted leadership and deep relationships across the church. Jerry previously served from 2001 to 2010 as president of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. For 10 years prior to that, he was president of the Texas District LCMS. He and his wife of 59+ years, Terry, have two grown children, one son-in-law, two grandchildren, and one grandson-in-law, all of whom live in Texas. Jerry and Terry are motivated, energized, and fulfilled by encouraging, supporting, and inspiring pastors and their spouses. 

Rev. Rony Marquardt was a participant in PLI from 2008 to 2012. Since 2013, he has provided leadership and introduced the PLI movement in Brazil and throughout the Lutheran Churches in Latin America. He has been a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brazil (IELB) since 1984 and was General Secretary and Vice-President of Theological Education on IELB’s National Board. Among his values, commitment and hard work are the most present. Rony and his wife Anica live in Portugal, where he serves as a pastor. He has four children and six granddaughters. Rony loves to travel, make new relationships and work with texts, including writing, revising, and translating books and Christian messages.

Sarah puts her marketing experience and organizational skills to amazing use for her various roles at PLI. Since joining the team in 2014, she has helped with administration, connections, marketing and so much more. She and her husband, Jon, both grew up four miles from their current home and enjoy being surrounded by friends and family. They’re blessed with three children. She is also quite the tennis player.

Lori has been the Women’s Director of the international work of PLI since 2015, and enjoys encouraging and blessing the women of PLI as they partner with their spouses and faithfully lead. Lori passes on her passion and love of learning to those she works with. Seeing families, and especially children, grow in knowledge is the real joy of the job! She has served in the education field for over 30 years in various roles including preschool and primary school teacher, director of children’s ministries, and teacher and Vice Principal at Buena Vista Concordia International School in Shenzhen, China. In her free time, Lori loves most to be with her children and grandchildren, enjoys outdoor activities, and relaxes with craft projects at home.

Scott is grateful to serve as the Director of Training for PLI and to lead with Lori, his wife of 42 years. They have 4 married children and 10 grandchildren and live in the northern panhandle of Idaho. As a part of their work with PLI, they previously lived in China for 3 years and continue to travel to all parts of the world.

Scott is a graduate of Concordia University Wisconsin and Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO. Prior to joining PLI in 2011, Scott served as a church planter, a lead pastor, and leader of a church planting network. He received his D. Min. from Bakke Graduate University in the area of leadership and church planting movements.

Scott’s passions and callings in life are to see people come into a faith relationship with Jesus Christ, as well as to teach, encourage, develop, and build the leadership capacity of pastors and leaders for God’s mission all over the world. Scott is a private pilot, and enjoys writing, teaching, music, woodworking, and anything outdoors.

Beth and her husband Paul have served on our training team since 2015. Her current role leads Beth to areas of Africa including Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Ghana, Burundi, and South Africa. Beth has had the joy of launching many missional communities of 8-12 people, as well as smaller connect groups of 3-4 people. In 2016, they moved with their six children from the Midwest to the California Bay Area. Beth’s richest blessing from God comes in the form of being a wife and mother, and grandma! She has a passion for worship, music, and teaching. She loves to explore the beautiful coast of California, taking as many pictures as her iPhone can possibly hold!

Rev. Paul Schult and his wife Beth joined PLI as trainers in 2015. He is honored to share the life-giving ministry of PLI. His personal values of humility, leadership, faith, and discipleship have been profoundly affected and strengthened by PLI. Paul grew up in Indiana which influenced his initial career path of being a high school basketball coach and English teacher. After attending seminary, he served as a pastor in Council Bluffs, Iowa, St. Charles, Missouri, and now in Redwood City, California. He loves being outdoors with Beth, traveling, reading, and most of all, spending time with their children and their families — especially their grandchildren!

Kellie is a dynamic leader with a heart for ministry, a strategic mindset, and a spirit of adventure. As Campaign Manager at PLI, she channels her energy and expertise into fundraising, outreach, and relationship-building. Kellie embraces Minnesota’s fleeting summers by spending as much time as possible on her pontoon. When she’s not on the water, she’s road biking, experimenting with bold new recipes, getting lost in a great novel, or tackling learning piano. Married to Todd, a pastor, Kellie is deeply committed to supporting church leaders. She is the proud mom of three children: Makenzie (in heaven), Nathan, and Madeline. Driven by faith, family, and a love for adventure, she is excited to play a key role in strengthening pastors, spouses, and ministry leaders.

Sara brings a deep heart for the PLI mission along with experience in both ministry and development. Most recently, Sara worked with Lutheran Hour Ministries in major and principal gifts, where she built relationships with partners, helped secure significant support for the ministry, and contributed to the leadership and development of the team. She has been a speaker for various conferences and retreats, founded and ran a nonprofit educational organization, worked in family ministry and student leadership, and homeschooled her two children (both of whom are now young adults). Sara’s connection to PLI goes back many years. Alongside her late husband, Eric, she participated in one of the first Missional Leader cohorts and later in Senior Leader. She values the investment PLI makes in women in ministry and the opportunity to grow as both an individual and a leader.  In this role, Sara will lead PLI’s development strategy and partnerships and grow the team to support and expand this work.

Erin finds joy in creating content and environments that help other leaders shine. A member of the PLI Team since 2018, she currently serves on the Communications Team. Erin and her husband Brian live and serve in Michigan. In recent years she has discovered a love for high school marching band and theater through her two daughters. When she takes a moment to pause, Erin enjoys cozying up with a book or grabbing a cup of tea with friends.