Kierra "Kia" Danielle Dotson

Ms. Kierra Danielle Dotson was born November 4, 1986 to Marcy Dotson in Indianapolis, IN. She is the fourth of six siblings and cherished mom of Amaya.

Kia, as she preferred to be called, graduated from Northwest High School in 2005. She attended Ivy Tech College for a short time but preferred to work with the public, spending most of her career in customer service and health care administration. She worked part-time for several years at TJ Maxx in Castleton, where she grew her already large collection of clothing and shoes, and befriended several co-workers, who mourn with her family. 

Kia accepted Christ as a child and maintained a faithful relationship with God. Through all of her ups and downs, bright and dark spots, she trusted God and maintained a strong prayer life. Kia had a giant smile and a loud infectious laugh. She was friendly, fun-loving and playful at heart. An aunt of 11, Kia was the favorite aunt, who would let the kids stay up late, eat too much sugar, jump on the bed and talk her ear off. They will miss her dearly. 

She was creative, with a generous heart, often making personalized gifts for her loved ones. She loved the color pink, cupcakes and spending time with one of her best friends, Ryan. A super-fan of any cooking show, especially Chopped and Cupcake Wars, she made the best biscuits and gravy in Indy and perfected cake pops.

Mourning her heartbreaking loss are her daughter, Amaya and co-parent, Darren Benning; sisters, Courtney and Jeria; brothers, Maurice, DeMarkes and Quincy; partner, Ryan Artis; cousins who were more like siblings, Janae, Jennifer, Danielle, DeWayne, and Eric; aunts, Relanda and Yolanda; uncles, Robert, Devon, Ronald and Jonathan; and bonus child, Kamia. 

She was preceded in death by her mother and best friend Marcy.