Laura Marie Kaeppeler (born March 2, 1988) is an American

beauty pageant A beauty pageant is a competition that has traditionally focused on judging and ranking the physical attributes of the contestants. Pageants have now evolved to include inner beauty, with criteria covering judging of personality, intelligence, ...

titleholder crowned

Miss America 2012 Miss America 2012, the 85th Miss America pageant, was held at the Theatre for the Performing Arts of Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada on Saturday, January 14, 2012. Miss America 2011, Teresa Scanlan fro ...

on January 14, 2012, representing the state of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. Kaeppeler was the first woman representing Wisconsin to win Miss America since

Terry Meeuwsen Terry Anne Meeuwsen Friedrich (born March 2, 1949) is an American television personality, co-host of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN)'s ''700 Club'', author and singer. Meeuwsen was the 1972 Miss Appleton, 1972 Miss Wisconsin and the w ...

won Miss America 1973. She was briefly on the board of directors for the

Miss America Organization Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

Background

Kaeppeler was born to Jeff and Sue Kaeppeler in

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

. In 2009 Kaeppeler won the title of Miss Kenosha. She then went on to win the talent preliminary award and was second runner-up to Miss Wisconsin 2010, Kimberly Sawyer. One year later Kaeppeler won the title of Miss Southern Wisconsin 2010. At the 2011 Miss Wisconsin Pageant, she won the preliminary talent award, which she tied with Raeanna Johnson, who later took over the Miss Wisconsin title after Laura won

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

. She attended St. Joseph High School and Carthage College, where she graduated in 2010 with a degree in music.

Miss America 2012 pageant

Kaeppeler was Wisconsin's representative at the

competition held in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

at the

Theatre for the Performing Arts The Zappos Theater, originally known as Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts, is a mid-sized auditorium located at Planet Hollywood Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip. The venue hosts a variety of events, including charity benefits, concerts and ...

Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino Planet Hollywood Las Vegas (formerly the Aladdin) is a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Eldorado Resorts, Caesars Entertainment. The property was previously the site of an earlier resort known ...

on January 14, 2012. In the preliminary competition, Kaeppeler won the talent portion and a $2,000 scholarship with her rendition of the

Luigi Arditi Luigi Arditi (16 July 1822 – 1 May 1903) was an Italian violinist, composer and conductor. Life Arditi was born in Crescentino, Piemonte (Italy). He began his musical career as a violinist, and studied music at the Milan Conservatory under ...

waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...

"Il Bacio". She chose a platform of supporting and mentoring children of incarcerated parents, as her father served 18 months in prison for

mail fraud Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to defraud another, and are federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the federal government if the illegal activit ...

. In the lifestyle and fitness competition, she wore a white bikini, and for her evening gown, Kaeppeler wore a black customized

Tony Bowls Tony Bowls (born Arkansas, USA) is a fashion designer and businessman who specializes in formal wear. Early years Tony Bowls was born in England, Arkansas. As a child, he studied dance with Joel Ruminer, and through him became involved as a ...

beaded dress. In the final round, judge

Lara Spencer Lara Christine Von Seelen (known professionally as Lara Spencer; born June 19, 1969) is an American television presenter. She is best known for being the co-anchor for ABC's ''Good Morning America''. She is also a correspondent for '' Nightline ...

asked Kaeppeler if beauty queens should declare their political viewpoint. Kaeppeler then answered, "Miss America represents everyone, so I think the message to political candidates is that they represent everyone as well. And so in these economic times, we need to be looking forward to what America needs, and I think Miss America needs to represent all." Kaeppeler beat out first runner-up Miss Oklahoma 2011, Betty Thompson, for the title of

and was crowned by

Miss America 2011 Miss America 2011 was the 84th Miss America pageant. Since the first Miss America pageant was held years ago, in 1921, the Miss America Organization was celebrating its 90th anniversary in 2011. It was held at the Theatre for the Performing Art ...

Teresa Scanlan Teresa Michelle Scanlan (born February 6, 1993) is an American beauty pageant titleholder from Gering, Nebraska who was named Miss Nebraska 2010, subsequently winning Miss America 2011 at age 17 and becoming the youngest Miss America since Bette ...

. Along with the title of Miss America, she also won a $50,000 scholarship.

Miss America role

Laura Kaeppeler at Nellis Air Force Base

Kaeppeler met

President Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

through a joint meeting with the Children's Miracle Network Hospital Champions at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

. Obama previously met with Miss America 2009

Katie Stam Katie R. Stam Irk (born July 9, 1986; née. Stam) is an American beauty queen from Seymour, Indiana, who was crowned Miss America 2009. Early life and education Stam was born to Keith and Tracy Stam, both middle school teachers, on July 9, 1986, ...

and Miss America 2010

Caressa Cameron Caressa Venal Cameron-Jackson (born August 4, 1987) is an American beauty pageant titleholder and occasional singer who was Miss Virginia 2009 and Miss America 2010. She is the eighth African American Miss America titleholder, the first Black Miss ...

during similar events.

Personal life

On April 6, 2014, Kaeppeler married television producer

Mike Fleiss Mike L. Fleiss (born April 14, 1964) is an American television producer and writer. Early life Fleiss was raised in Fullerton, California. He attended the University of California, Berkeley. Career He is the creator, producer and writer of '' ...

, who was a judge at the

pageant which Kaeppeler won. The couple's son, Benjamin, was born in May 2015, and second son George was born in 2020. Kaeppeler is currently the co-host of the Health Interrupted Podcast with celebrity fitness trainer Gina Lombardi.

References

External links

laurakaeppeler.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaeppeler, Laura 1988 births Living people Carthage College alumni Miss America 2012 delegates Miss America winners People from Kenosha, Wisconsin Miss America Preliminary Talent winners