Kaye Lani Rae Rafko

Who is Kaye Lani Rae Rafko?

Kaye Lani Rae Rafko Wilson is the winner of the 1988 Miss America Pageant. She is from Monroe, Michigan where a street is now named for her.

On September 19, 1987, Rafko was named as the Miss America 1988, after winning the Miss Michigan pageant of 1987. Rafko has participated in a number of fundraising activities and has been a vocal advocate for nursing and hospice programs. She has addressed medical professional organizations around the world on the topic of nursing, including groups in Malaysia, Paris, Rome, and Singapore.

Rafko is a registered nurse and is married to Charles Wilson. They have three children: Nick, Alana and Joe. Rafko is the Executive Director of Gabby’s Ladder, a bereavement program for children and their families, an organization she founded after the death of her fourth child. Other family included a younger brother, Nick, who played football at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 1989 to 1993, and who was killed in a car accident on June 26, 1994.

In the Miss America competition her platform included help for hospice services and her talent was a Tahitian dancing performance. She was interviewed by the then-unknown Michael Moore in his documentary Roger & Me. The interview was conducted at a parade in Flint. Rafko gave superficial answers to Moore's questions on unemployment, stating on camera that she didn't want to say anything that would jeopardize her chances of winning the pageant.