"My Journey into Elder Care Law"
by Bill Hammond
My journey into Elder Care Law began in 1996 when my mother-in-law, Reenie, moved out to Los Angeles to live with one of her children. My wife Mary and I were raising our five kids and attending to all the duties that busy parents have nowadays.
After my mother-in-law had been in LA for a couple of months, one day she took some laundry into the dry cleaners for her son. On the way in, she tripped and fell and broke her hip. She was going to be in one of the big LA hospitals for about 10 days for a hip replacement...and halfway through that hospital stay, she woke up in the middle of the night to terrible crashing sounds.
It was the LA earthquake!
As you might imagine, since she was orginally from Kansas City, this was quite frightening to her, and she suffered a mini-stroke. Since the son she was living with in LA could not care for her...she needed round-the-clock care...we brought her home to move in with myself, my wife, and our five kids, ages 4 to 15.
The first night she was staying with us, things went fine. I had turned my office at home into a bedroom and we put a bell on the night stand, and all she had to do was ring the bell for help. The second night, she decided that this was too much bother for us, so she got up to go to the bathroom on her own...fell and broke her other hip!
And that started a whole spiral of health issues, which led us right into the hospital/rehab/nursing home community.
After a while, I became frustrated with the inability to find answers to the types of questions you are undoubtedly facing today. That's why I opened the doors to The Elder & Disability Law Firm.
Today, all of the attorneys and staff of our firm share a common bond -- we all have a great passion for helping seniors in our area deal with the challenges that many older Americans face.
This help comes in a number of ways -- from our Elder Care Workshops, to which our staff members donate their time every month, to the Alzheimer's Resource Kit we've prepared to help seniors and their families protect their hard-earned savings, to the smiling face that you see as you enter our office.
We all take great pride in the service that we've provided our community for over 15 years, since 1996.
We have helped thousands of Kansas and Missouri families in areas such as Medicaid Qualification and Planning, Estate Planning, as well as assistance in finding the appropriate Nursing Homes and/or Assisted Living Facilities to meet the family's needs.
Learn More About Our Staff...
William Hammond | Amber Thailing | Daniel Flack | Ken HerringLori Sanders | Courtney Roy | Sandy Stander | Steve Kuker
Jennifer McKinley | Staci Holcom | Kelsie Schuster | Jana Hennessey
William Hammond
William G. Hammond, J.D., is the founder and owner of the Elder and Disability Law Firm, P.A., in Overland Park, Kansas. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A. Govt. 1977) and the University of Notre Dame Law School (J.D. 1980). Mr. Hammond, licensed to practice law in Kansas and Missouri, is an author and lecturer. He is co-author of The Kansas and Missouri Nursing Home Guide and the Alzheimer's Legal Survival Guide. He also writes Elder Law Today, a monthly publication for professionals. Mr. Hammond lectures frequently on Elder Law issues as well as on the legal issues faced by families who have a loved one with Alzheimer's. He is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. He and his wife, Mary, live in Olathe, Kansas, with their five children, Danny, Katie, Laura, Matt and Molly.
Amber Thailing
Amber A. Thailing, M.S.W., J.D., is a graduate of University of Kansas School of Social Welfare and Law School. She is licensed in Kansas and Missouri, and practices in the areas of Kansas and Missouri Probate and Estate Planning. Amber has lived in eight states as her family moved around every two or three years, and now calls Overland Park her home. Before coming to The Elder & Disability Law Firm, Amber worked as an associate attorney with a family law firm. Amber is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.
Daniel Flack
Daniel E. Flack is the head legal assistant for the firm. Dan supervises our clients' Kansas and Missouri Medicaid applications and Redeterminations. Dan is incredibly detail-oriented and has an amazing ability to assist our clients with gathering information they did not even realize existed. In addition to managing the other legal assistants in our office, Dan assists with legal research and drafts Medicaid briefs and memorandums. We are told by caseworkers in both Kansas and Missouri that he prepares some of the most comprehensive Medicaid applications they have ever seen! Dan has a gift for helping our clients through the maze of Medicaid qualification during a time of great stress.
Ken Herring
Kenneth A. Herring was a Senior Vice President in the Personal Trust and Probate Division of UMB Bank n.a. since 1984. He graduated in 1981 from Evangel University, Springfield, Missouri, where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Government and Management. During college he served as an intern for United States Senator Lawton Chiles and was also named the Outstanding Government Student and graduated Cum Laude. Mr. Herring attended the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, where he received the Juris Doctor Degree in 1984. Mr. Herring is a member of the Missouri Bar Association and the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, serving as an active member of the probate and trust committee for both organizations, having served as Chairman of the Trust and Probate Committee.
Mr. Herring has spoken at seminars, conferences and workshops on the needs of the elderly, particularly in the area of estate and financial planning, specifically, the importance of powers of attorney, wills, trusts, joint property, living wills, guardianship and conservatorship and investments.
Lori Sanders
Lori Sanders earned her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Central Oklahoma in Fashion Merchandising. After an extended career in Health Care Materials Management in Kansas and Missouri, Lori has recently completed her post-graduate Certification in Paralegal Studies at Johnson County Community College and is now a Medicaid coordinator for the EDLF.
Courtney Roy
Courtney S. Roy, managing attorney for The Elder & Disability Law Firm (EDLF), graduated Salisbury State University with a bachelors in Economics and Psychology and she earned her law degree from The University of Baltimore School of Law. Prior to joining the firm, Courtney was an attorney for the Maryland Disability Law Firm where she represented individuals in state psychiatric facilities with respect to their legal rights and entitlements (forced medication appeals, advocating against excessive or unnecessary restraints and/or seclusion, and ensuring appropriate placement and treatment). Growing up in Annapolis, Maryland, she relocated to Kansas City for what was to be a "transitional" period. After meeting Bill, his staff and the clients of EDLF, she had no choice but to make Kansas City her home. Courtney is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and in addition to Probate, Medicaid and Estate Planning, represents our clients in Medicaid hearings, hearings appealing unlawful discharges and guardianship hearings. Courtney lectures frequently on resident rights in nursing homes.
Sandy Stander
Sandy Stander is a paralegal with The Elder & Disability Law Firm. She earned her bachelor's degree from Kansas State University in 1988 and her paralegal certificate from Johnson County Community College in 1998. She is a member of both the Kansas Paralegal Association and the National Association of Legal Assistants. Sandy is our head paralegal for probate and trust administration. In addition to drafting our probate pleadings, she is also responsible for performing legal research, drafting estate planning documents and real estate deeds. Sandy also deals with insurance companies and financial institutions on a daily basis. She can assist in cutting through the bureaucratic red tape to find the answers to our clients' most pressing questions.
Steve Kuker
Steve Kuker is a Senior Care Consultant with the Elder and Disability Law Firm. He graduated from the Washburn University School of Business in 1985 with a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Management and Marketing. He has 25 years of experience in senior-related healthcare and has been a Group Director of Business Development for Columbia HCA, and Vice President of Sales and Marketing for a long term care Management Company, as well as the Vice President of a Medicare certified home health company.
In 2002, Steve developed a full-service placement program after helping his grandparents through the transition from their home to an assisted living facility. The placement program includes touring care centers with his clients and conducting a 47-point inspection and performance audit. He helps individuals and families choose the right Nursing Home, Assisted Living Facility, or Alzheimer’s Memory-Care Unit for an elderly loved one.
After developing a great relationship with Bill Hammond and the Firm over the years, Steve joined in 2010 and now offers the placement service through the Firm. The service is called the Guardian Angel Care Center Placement Program. Steve frequently presents workshops and lectures on many senior healthcare-related subjects such as “Senior Options for Independence”, “How to Choose the Right Level of Care”, “When to Make the Move to a Care Facility”, and “Caring for the Caregiver”. Steve is a founding member of the Kansas City Partnership for Caregivers and is the President of Reveal Ministries, Inc. Steve and his wife, Susan, live in Spring Hill, Kansas with their four children.
Jennifer McKinley
Jennifer McKinley is a staff attorney with The Elder and Disability Law Firm. She is a graduate of Missouri Western State College (now University) with a Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice and Legal Studies. She earned her law degree from the University of Dayton School of Law. She is currently licensed in Missouri and is a member of the Missouri Bar Association. Jennifer enjoys meeting and interacting with clients to assist in putting their estate plan into place.
Staci Holcom
Staci Holcom is a paralegal with The Elder and Disability Law Firm. She has been with the firm since 2008. Staci earned her degree in Paralegal Studies from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas, and has been a paralegal for 17 years. Her diverse legal background includes corporate law, commercial real estate transactions and estate planning. Staci enjoys writing and has been a contributing author on four different publications. She will work with you to not only meet your immediate legal needs, but to also provide the peace of mind that comes from a job well done.
Kelsie Schuster
Kelsie Schuster joined the firm in the summer of 2009. A native of western Kansas, she graduated from Fort Hays State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Kelsie is a legal assistant and also shares some of the marketing duties for the firm.
Jana Hennessey
Jana Hennessey is a graduate of Fort Hays State University. She lived in various places around Oklahoma and Kansas before finally settling down in the Kansas City area. Jana began working here in November of 2010 as the office receptionist.
