Laura Kaeppeler

Laura Marie Kaeppeler is an American beauty pageant titleholder born on March 2, 1988, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to parents Jeff and Sue Kaeppeler. She attended St. Joseph High School in her hometown before pursuing higher education at Carthage College. In 2010, she graduated from Carthage College with a degree in music.

Kaeppeler began competing in beauty pageants while completing her education. In 2009, she earned the title of Miss Kenosha 2010. At the Miss Wisconsin 2010 pageant, she won the preliminary talent award and finished as second runner-up to winner Kimberly Sawyer. One year later, she won the title of Miss Southern Wisconsin 2010. She went on to compete at the Miss Wisconsin 2011 pageant, where she tied with Raeanna Johnson for the preliminary talent award and won the state title.

In January 2012, Kaeppeler represented Wisconsin at the Miss America 2012 pageant, held at the Theatre for the Performing Arts at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. During preliminary events, she won the talent portion and a $2,000 scholarship with a rendition of Luigi Arditi's waltz "Il Bacio". She selected a campaign platform focused on supporting and mentoring children of incarcerated parents, drawing from her personal experience of her father serving 18 months in prison for mail fraud. In the competition, she wore a white bikini for the lifestyle and fitness segment and a black customized Tony Bowls beaded dress for the evening gown event.

During the final interview round, judge Lara Spencer asked Kaeppeler whether beauty queens should declare political viewpoints, to which Kaeppeler answered that Miss America needs to represent all people. On January 14, 2012, Kaeppeler won the title of Miss America 2012, receiving a $50,000 scholarship and being crowned by Miss America 2011, Teresa Scanlan. She defeated first runner-up Betty Thompson, Miss Oklahoma 2011, becoming the first woman representing Wisconsin to win the national competition since Terry Meeuwsen in 1973. Following her victory, Raeanna Johnson took over the title of Miss Wisconsin.

During her tenure as Miss America, Kaeppeler met with President Barack Obama at the White House in a joint event with Children's Miracle Network Hospital Champions. She later served briefly on the board of directors for the Miss America Organization.

On April 6, 2014, Kaeppeler married television producer Mike Fleiss, who had served as a judge during the Miss America 2012 pageant. The couple welcomed their first child, Benjamin, in May 2015. Following a divorce filing by Fleiss in July 2019, Kaeppeler was granted an emergency domestic violence restraining order against him based on allegations of verbal and physical assault, leading to an investigation by the Kauai Police Department. After reaching a reported $10 million settlement in which allegations were withdrawn, the couple announced their reconciliation in November 2019, and their second child, George, was born in 2020. Kaeppeler currently co-hosts the Health Interrupted Podcast alongside celebrity fitness trainer Gina Lombardi.