Who Is Shara Mathes? Get to Know Chaz Bono’s Longtime Partner’s Job, Family, More

Fans have known Cher and the late Sonny Bono's son, Chaz Bono, ever since he was a child on their 1970s variety show. As he's competed Dancing With the Stars and forged and acting career, fans want to know more about his fiancée and longtime partner, Shara Mathes.

How Long Have Chaz Bono and Shara Mathes Been Together?

The couple met via mutual friends in 2017 and have been together ever since. Chaz and Shara are engaged, although it's unclear when he popped the question.

Chaz revealed exactly when their relationship began in a gushing Instagram post on January 19, 2023. "Shara and I celebrated our 6-year anniversary together today. I’m so grateful to share my life with this amazing woman," he wrote next to a selfie of the couple.

Shara shouted out her love for Chaz in a November 24, 2023, Instagram post, posing together as he carved a Thanksgiving turkey. "Nothing but love and gratitude on this Thanksgiving Day. Being with family was amazing today but somehow this was the only pic I took! I love my baby and am also feeling very grateful for the love he gives me, everyday! Happy Thanksgiving," she wrote in the caption.

Is Shara Mathes Close With Cher?

Shara referred to Cher as her "mother-in-law" in a May 2021 birthday tribute to the legend.

They stood side-by-side in an Instagram photo as she wrote in the caption, "Happy Birthday to the Queen of the 'lip lick' and EVERYTHING else!! I love you and I’m so lucky to call you Mother-in-law. Thank you for everything you do for me, I am forever grateful."

What Does Shara Mathes Do for a Living?

Since 2014, Shara has worked as a case manager and harm reduction specialist for the non-profit Housing Works in Los Angeles. The group's website states, "Our mission is to create housing and service options that model, with respect and dignity, sustainable, environmentally sensitive, affordable communities for people of limited resources."

She previously worked as a sober companion for several groups, as well as a case manager for Homeless Health Care Los Angeles.

Shara Is a Cancer Survivor

Shara battled the disease in 2021. She told fans about her diagnosis in a post that July while out for her birthday dinner with Chaz.

"My babe @therealchazbono took me out to Geoffrey's tonight in Malibu. I received some lovely gifts, but the best gift is being alive. We enjoyed each other as we drove alongside the ocean! Happy Birthday to me – yeah, I filtered this baby a few times! You would too if you had stage 3 cancer during the apocalypse," she wrote in the caption.

In October 2021, Shara posted a video of her friend shaving off her hair. "Just gonna buzz this stuff off 'cause it really didn't make it. Some major shedding after I finished chemo ... its time," she told viewers.

The following month her hair was starting to grow back. "Holiday vibes are feeling really good and the gratitude runs deep," she captioned a November 2021 photo sitting by a firepit next to Chaz with the hashtag "f--k cancer," as well as "grateful."

Chaz posted the same snapshot, writing next to it, "I love this picture of @sharablue and I. I think it somehow captures the incredible strength and dignity Shara’s embodied throughout her breast cancer treatments this year, and how much I absolutely adore her and have tried to be a loving supportive partner."

Shara Is Close to Her Family

She has a son named Cooper, although she rarely shares photos with him. Shara is extremely close to her brother, Zach. In a 2021 Instagram post for his 33rd birthday, she shared a photo with her sibling and wrote, "My brother. My Lighthouse. When I’m with him I am always home."