For all who have offered support financially and otherwise, thank you. I hope this helps confirm the value of your contributions. Be sure and read the two articles below about Mental Health in Bhutan.
PRESS RELEASE
Release Date – April 7, 2026
Contact: Danielle Stonehirsch, Communications Manager
Email: d.stonehirsch@hvousa.org
Phone: (202) 296-0928
Steven Sonnenberg, MD Recognized for
Commitment and Leadership in Global Health
[Washington, DC – April 7, 2026] Health Volunteers Overseas (HVO) is pleased to announce
Steven Sonnenberg, MD is a recipient of the twenty-first annual HVO Golden Apple Award. As
part of its World Health Day observances and in celebration of World Health Worker Week,
HVO recognizes the extraordinary contributions of HVO members, volunteers and supporters.
Each individual honored with this award has demonstrated a commitment to HVO’s mission to
improve global health through the education, training, and professional development of the
health workforce in resource-scarce countries.
Dr. Sonnenberg has made four three-month long trips to Bhutan between 2019 and 2025
during which he provided lectures, training, and mentorship to mental health staff at Jigme
Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital in Thimphu, Bhutan. He was the first HVO volunteer
to resume service work for the mental health project after the pandemic shutdowns. His love of
Bhutanese culture and sustained engagement in the development of the Bhutanese mental
health system have allowed him to contribute in particularly meaningful ways. He played a
crucial role in expanding mental health care capacity in Bhutan, a fast-growing area of priority
within the country’s evolving health system. His colleagues in Bhutan describe him as generous,
trustworthy, dedicated, and exceptional.
After forty years of practice and administration in a wide variety of community psychiatry
settings, Dr. Sonnenberg recently retired as an inpatient geriatric psychiatrist at a community
hospital in the Adirondack Mountains of northern New York. After graduating from Hahnemann
Medical University in Philadelphia and completing his psychiatric residency and a Master of Arts
in philosophy at the University of Washington in Seattle, Dr. Sonnenberg moved to rural New
York State with the National Health Services Corp, ultimately working in underserved areas of
Central, Western, and Northern New York.
Dr. Sonnenberg completed training and ordination as a Buddhist chaplain with the Upaya Zen
Center in Santa Fe, NM and certification as a Mindfulness Meditation Teacher. He feels that
teaching psychiatry in Bhutan has been the opportunity of a lifetime, allowing the integration of
a lifetime of psychiatric practice with an emersion in the country’s Buddhist culture. He views it
as a privilege and the highlight of his career.
“Dr. Sonnenberg embodies the spirit of partnership, service, and excellence that defines HVO’s
mission. We are deeply grateful for his leadership and proud to celebrate his lasting
contributions to global health,” remarked HVO Executive Director, April Pinner, MSPH, RD.
The efforts of HVO Golden Apple Award recipients are an integral part of HVO’s mission to
expand access to care by educating and supporting health workers. By highlighting the
achievements and contributions of the Golden Apple Award recipients, HVO seeks to
demonstrate how education and opportunity for health workers will lead to more people
around the world being able to access safe, skilled, and compassionate health care when they
need it most.
The HVO Board of Directors established the HVO Golden Apple Award in 2006 to recognize and
thank the individuals and health educators who make exceptional contributions to HVO and our
mission to improve global health. Each year, a handful of individuals – nominated by HVO
members, volunteers or leadership, or by our overseas partners – receive the award in
recognition of the substantial impact they have had as teachers, advisers, mentors, and leaders.
Since 1950, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the international community have
celebrated World Health Day on April 7. The day always focuses on a relevant global health
issue, and this year’s theme is “Global Action for Universal Health Coverage.” The theme
focuses on ensuring that people everywhere can access essential health services, including
prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care, without experiencing financial
hardship. For more information on World Health Day, visit the WHO website.
ABOUT HVO
Health Volunteers Overseas is a nonprofit organization that seeks to improve global health
through education of the local health workforce in resource-scarce countries. HVO volunteers
build local capacity by empowering health care professionals with knowledge and skills to
address the health care needs of their communities. HVO volunteers are trained health care
professionals – physicians, nurses, dentists, physical therapists and others – willing to donate
their time and expertise to work side-by-side with their colleagues overseas. Since 1986, HVO
staff and volunteers have collaborated with a variety of health institutions to design, develop
and implement each HVO project, working toward better patient care around the globe in
trauma care, child and maternal health, essential surgery, cancer care, rehabilitation, and more.
Visit http://www.hvousa.org to learn how you can become part of our global health community.
Our Seasons in Shangri la 