About Family Shepherd
If you are preparing to transition a loved one from their home to a care community, Family Shepherd is here to help. Our dedicated team of experts focuses on providing assistance and guidance to seniors and their families in the Kansas City area, with the aim to alleviate stress. We know that the house is often the familys largest asset, and we are here to help free up that equity in the house quickly. We work with families to buy the house and share all our trusted local senior living resources to make the transition easier. Know that we are here to guide, protect, and serve your family. Best of all, we dont charge any fees for our services.
Transitioning a loved one to a care community is an overwhelming journey. Its a path many families tread with uncertainty, unsure of where to begin. Questions like How can we afford the care Mom deserves? often weigh heavily. With each passing day, the health and well-being of Mom grows more concerning. The sooner you can afford to get her transferred, the safer she will be.
This is where Family Shepherd comes in. For us, foundationally, it starts with the house. The house is generally the largest asset and resource for affording long-term care. We assist seniors, and their families, by buying the homes, freeing up immediate funding for the next stage of care. But it doesnt stop there.
Ben Rao, Founder and Lead Shepherd
Ben Rao is the author of the Amazon best-selling book, Paying for Long-Term Care, a life-long entrepreneur, philanthropist and senior care advocate with over 20 years of experience in real estate.
Ben was raised in Louisville, Kentucky by his stepfather Tom and his mother Peela, who devoted 40 years to not-for-profit senior services. Ben experienced first-hand the emotional and financial struggle that families face when he was unexpectedly confronted with the reality of transitioning Tom into senior care. He was challenged by the lack of direction and resources available for a process that nearly all of us will eventually need to go through.
That experience inspired Ben to use his personal and professional experience in the long-term care industry to help families transition their loved ones into senior care. His entrepreneurial background has helped him become an excellent problem solver which has been a skill he enjoys using to help seniors and their families. After selling a nationally recognized business in Senior Living industry in June 2023, Ben has turned his energy and senior living expertise to help families in Kansas City. Ben enjoys helping other people.
Ben lives with his wife, Rhonda, and their two children, Maddy and Charlie, in a renovated historic building that was once the Lees Summit Hospital and the Dayton Hotel in Downtown Lees Summit. He developed Lees Summits first entrepreneurial incubator and office space in a formerly vacant post office. He works there alongside his trusty sidekick, Charlie dog, a border collie who has gone to the office with him every day for the last 13 years.