Career
Her talk show Sonja, which she presented since the 1970s, was noted for breaking taboos and allowing ordinary people a voice in public dialog. She retired from television in 2006, after four decades of television making. Barend has worked for television since 1966.
In 1996 Sonja op Zaterdag ("Saturday") came to an end, after the retirement of Ellen Blazer, her regular producer, with whom she collaborated from the beginning of her television career.
Her show, which featured interview and public discussion, was known for allowing ordinary people to have their say. This included, for instance, the viewpoints of ethnic minorities, and relied to a great extent on Barend"s personality and commitment.
According to Marcel van Dam, chairman of the Vereeniging van Arbeiders Radio Amateurs from 1985 on to 1995, she personified the public"s negative perception of the Vereeniging van Arbeiders Radio Amateurs (ill-tempered, moralistic), but he could not imagine how the Vereeniging van Arbeiders Radio Amateurs would have survived without her. That last episode, which included an overview of her career and a number of notable television personalities, received a subtitle, "En morgen gezond weer op!" ("And tomorrow, wake up healthy"), in reference to her usual closing of her television shows.
Gezond Weer Op is also the title of a collection of interviews culled from her shows.
An annual award for best television interview is named after her.