Michele Diane Kiser, the founder and president of Missouri-based distributor firm Advertising Plus (asi/111774), passed away on January 1. She was 53.

Kiser was born on July 1, 1961 in Lebanon, MO, to Gerald and Wanda Carr Knight. She started Advertising Plus in 1989, and she was well-known throughout her local community. In 1992, she was a runner up in the Mrs. Missouri pageant, and she also served on many boards including the Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks and the Price Cutter Charity Championship. Kiser will be recognized posthumously by the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame on January 25 of this year with the Founders Award.

Kiser is survived by her husband (Marc Kiser) and son (Mitchell Kiser), as well as her mother (Wanda Carr Knight) and two brothers (Steve Knight and wife Beth, and Jeff Knight and wife Amy). She was preceded in death by her father (Gerald Knight) and sister (Kim Knight).

Memorial services for Kiser took place on Monday at Greenlawn Funeral Home East in Springfield, MO. The family asks that any donations in Kiser’s name be made to The Breast Cancer Foundation of the Ozarks, 330 North Jefferson, Suite B, Springfield, Missouri 65806.