Cyndi grew up on a multi-generational family farm in Scott County, Illinois. She majored in agricultural education and animal science at Western Illinois University and began her radio career at WJIL in Jacksonville, Illinois. She then worked for Oklahoma Agrinet and WTAX, Springfield, Illinois before joining Brownfield in 1998. She has traveled extensively throughout the United States and to 16 different countries covering agriculture. Her work has earned her dozens of honors from agriculture groups and associations. A member of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting for 37 years, Cyndi was recognized as Farm Broadcaster of the Year for the nation in 1997, received the coveted Oscar in Agriculture in 2009 and was inducted into the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2021. Cyndi and her husband, Jim Puyear, raise Simmental cattle on their farm in mid-Missouri.