She graduated from Kansas State Agricultural College in 1921 with a degree in industrial journalism.
While at Kansas State University, Paddleford met and married engineering student Lloyd D. Zimmerman, separating within a year.
In 1932 she underwent surgery for a malignant growth on her larynx that left her with a tracheotomy tube in her throat, which she covered to speak, concealing it with a black ribbon.
[2] After a series of writing jobs, Paddleford joined the New York Herald Tribune in 1936.
[1] Paddleford was a pilot, and flew a Piper Cub around the country to report on America's many regional cuisines.