Law and Order fans will tell you that one of the biggest things to know about Detective Elliot Stabler is that above all, he's a family man. And it seems like that sentiment holds true for actor Chris Meloni, who has played him off and on for the last 2o+ years.
The Law and Order: Organized Crime star attended a charity event with his wife Sherman Williams on October 14 for Global Lyme Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to researching and curing Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. Chris, who has become a celebrity ambassador for the organization and even starred in a PSA for them back in August, gave an emotional speech at the event about how Lyme disease has personally affected his family.
Not only were fans of the 62-year-old thrilled to see the Oz alum's growing involvement with GLA, but they couldn't stop gushing over a rare photo (slide 3) he shared with his wife when he shared a gallery of images on Instagram after the event.
"Couple goals. We all need a partner going this hard at bat for us. Thank you for setting that standard and example 💚💚💚," one person said. "The way you always look at your wife, after all these years, makes my heart happy. #truelove," someone wrote. "I love the picture of you with Sherman 😍," a different fan commented. Another individual chimed in, "❤️😍 they way you look at Sherman... melts my heart 🔥."
Chris has always been big on praising his wife, whom he shares children Sophia, 22, and Dante, 19 with, but he's especially gone out of his way to acknowledge all the work Sherman did to figure out how Lyme disease was affecting their immediate family.
In an August interview with People, the SVU alum opened up about his family's journey to learning everything they could about the disease as well as what it's like dealing with it on a day-to-day basis. "My family was affected by this disease in a very dramatic way. And it was a whole big learning curve because it took us two years to get the correct diagnoses. It was pretty heartbreaking," he told People. "Witnessing the ones you love more than anything in the world being relentlessly tortured before your eyes… it gets really dark. There's no other light that I see, it's the bleakest thing to either experience or to witness."
Chris and Sherman continue to be advocates for awareness and urge others to educate themselves about GLA's mission and the symptoms to be on the lookout for in order to protect their own health. You can also learn more about signs and symptoms of the disease here.
Annie O’Sullivan (she/her) covers holiday, gift guide, travel, and lifestyle content at Good Housekeeping. She has a degree in magazine journalism from Syracuse University and previously reported for Runner’s World, NBC New York/NY 4 and Woman’s Day. Annie also has experience writing entertainment news and celebrity-focused content.
