Born from one friendship. Built on a belief that everyone belongs.
Shepherd's Way is a faith-rooted organization dedicated to empowering adults with intellectual disabilities to live independent, community-engaged, and purpose-driven lives. Here is how we got here, what we believe, and why it matters.
It started with one invitation.
Ben invited Dallas to move out of the shelter and into an apartment with him, the same way guys in college become roommates. Dallas said yes. That small leap of faith started everything.
In that apartment, Dallas began learning the skills the world had told him he could never master. He learned to manage his own budget. To plan his schedule. To cook meals, shop for groceries, navigate his community, and build a social life. Within a year, he and Ben moved into a four-bedroom duplex with two of Ben's colleagues, Taylor Miller and Adam Ginzel. In that larger household, Dallas grew even more, both in life skills and in confidence.
When Adam moved away, Ben and Taylor met Lynn and Roy Craft, the parents of Jordan, one of Dallas's close friends. The Crafts' deepest worry was a question many families of adults with disabilities carry quietly: what happens when we can no longer care for him? Ben and Taylor extended the same invitation they had given Dallas. Jordan said yes too.
Over the following year, Taylor poured himself into teaching Jordan everything that had made Dallas so successful. Together, Ben and Taylor built the first model of what is now Shepherd's Way: a home where young adult mentors invest in the lives of their peers, shatter limitations, and help people thrive.
In 2014, a young Wichitan named Ben French met Dallas, a man with an intellectual disability who would change the entire direction of his life. They became friends. And then, a year later, when Dallas and his family were going through a season of homelessness, Ben chose to see the situation differently than most people would. He did not see a problem. He saw a person with potential.
"God challenged and blessed Ben to see Dallas' situation through the lens of hope and prosperity, rather than through the lens of hopelessness and brokenness."
Launching adults with disabilities into independent, community-engaged, and purpose-driven lives.
Shepherd's Way sees every individual for the unique identity, beauty, and capability within them. We are dedicated to empowering people with intellectual disabilities to look beyond the limitations others have placed on them, and into a life in which they can genuinely thrive. That means teaching practical skills, yes. But it also means investing in confidence, joy, spiritual growth, and the deep human need for community and belonging.
Recognizing gifts
Cultivating a spirit of confidence and joy in every person we serve, and promoting the unique gifts they bring to the world.
Teaching independence
Delivering individualized, evidence-based coaching in the skills that lead to a healthy, self-directed life.
Building community
Fostering opportunities for healthy, mutually life-changing relationships between people of all abilities.
Honoring every person
Responding to the needs of individuals across all backgrounds while remaining faithful to our founding values.
We believe every person was fearfully and wonderfully made.
Shepherd's Way is a faith-rooted organization. Our work began as a response to a spiritual conviction that God does not create anyone to simply survive. Every person, regardless of ability, was made to thrive, to contribute, and to impact the lives of others.
That belief shapes everything we do. We do not see the people we serve through the lens of their disability. We see them through the lens of their potential and their God-given identity. We walk alongside them not just in practical skill-building, but in their spiritual journey as well, shepherding their hearts and nurturing the confidence and joy that come from knowing who they truly are.
We are also burdened by the reality that thousands of individuals with intellectual disabilities in Texas are currently falling through the cracks due to a lack of funding and services. Shepherd's Way Waco is committed to meeting the needs of this underserved population, one home and one relationship at a time.