Jared Sonnenberg Honored for Chaplaincy Service to Logan County First Responders

Being a first responder is one of the most challenging jobs there is and sometimes they need someone to be there for them. In Logan County, that person is Jared Sonnenberg, who serves as chaplain for Sterling Police Department, Sterling Fire Department, the Logan County Sheriff’s Office and ATF’s Denver field office and was named Chaplain of the Year in 2025 by the Rocky Mountain Police and Fire Chaplains group.

Sonnenberg also co-owns Sonnenberg Agency and traces his path to chaplaincy back to theological studies he resumed around 2007, when a pastoral mentor suggested chaplaincy ministry would suit his skillset. That combination of local business ties and ministry training underpins the roles he fills across municipal, county and federal responders in and beyond Sterling.

His community work extends into nonprofits focused on families of the fallen. Sonnenberg has worked with his friend Jason Santomaso to establish a chapter of Angels of America’s Fallen in Sterling, an organization that supports children who have lost a parent in the line of duty, either on the military side or the responder side. “Jason and I have gotten a chapter started out here in Sterling for that group. So if people want something to give to the Angels of America’s Fallen is a wonderful organization,” Sonnenberg said. A portion of the proceeds from the Sterling Livestock Commission’s annual Meat In event, scheduled for March 21 at 11 a.m. at the Logan County Fairgrounds, go to the organization, and Sonnenberg gives the prayer every year at the organization’s gala.

The Chaplain of the Year award came from a regional nonprofit that now has membership in 16 states and Canada and that runs a training group Sonnenberg participates in. That training group is starting to go all over the country to train new people on how to be chaplains for their local jurisdictions and agencies, a role that positions Sonnenberg not just as a local support for Logan County responders but as a trainer for chaplains in other communities.

Mental-health outreach is another concrete component of Sonnenberg’s local work. Once a year he presents on mental health to Sterling High School FFA students during Mental Awareness Month, an initiative he said came from his daughter, Ellee. Those school presentations connect prevention and awareness work with the same responder-support network Sonnenberg serves in crisis and routine calls.

Between chaplain duties across Sterling Police, Sterling Fire, the Logan County Sheriff’s Office and the ATF’s Denver field office, leading a local chapter for families of the fallen, and taking part in a regional training effort that covers 16 states and Canada, Sonnenberg’s service threads through emergency response, youth outreach and nonprofit fundraising in Logan County. The award and the fundraising calendar both highlight how his work produces measurable local benefits: interagency chaplain coverage, training that spreads nationally, and money for children of fallen service members and responders raised at community events.