Born 1935 in New York City to deaf parents, Alfred Sonnenstrahl was educated at the New York School for the Deaf and at the hearing Stuyvesant School, an advanced college preparatory institution. This training helped him enter New York University in 1954 and graduate with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1958. During this time he married a Gallaudet student, Deborah Belle Meranski, and after graduation they had two children, Samuel and Beth.

Sonnenstrahl spent his early career as a civilian engineer in the Department of the Navy, helping to design ventilation, piping, and propulsion systems for ships and submarines. From 1964 to 1968, he served on the National Association of the Deaf Civil Service Committee, where his work helped thousands of deaf people find jobs in the postal service. In 1968, he attended the Leadership Training Program at San Fernando Valley State College (now California State University at Northridge), graduating with a master’s degree in administration and supervision. Leaving engineering behind, he focused his work on the rights of the deaf, particularly in employment and support.

Through the 1970s, he worked in several different positions, including serving as a placement consultant on the Michigan Employment Security Commission, the state coordinator of deaf programs on the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, and the director of the Petra Howard House, an institution for mentally ill deaf in Minneapolis. His work led to the creation of agencies such as the Massachusetts Office of Deafness, the Massachusetts State Association of the Deaf, and AT+T’s Operator Services for the Deaf. He also worked with institutions such as the US Postal Service and Chrysler Corporation to find jobs for the deaf.

During the late 1980s and 1990s, the field of telecommunications was changing swiftly due to new developments in telecommunications technology, the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the breakup of monolithic telephone companies and ensuing deregulation. Sonnenstrahl became executive director of Telecommunications for the Deaf Inc. (TDI) in 1987, and was deeply involved in making sure that the deaf had access to these new developments. He was involved in drafting Title II and Title IV of the ADA, which provided for equal access to emergency services for the deaf and the creation of nationwide relay services. He went on to found the task force that was the predecessor of the FDA’s Disability Rights Office.

For his efforts on behalf of the deaf, Sonnenstrahl received the Gallaudet University Alumni Association’s Laurent Clerc Award in 2014.