For Seniors : Wheelchair Hostess Says: ‘Let the Good Times Roll!’

Sue Gordon remembers all too clearly the day she was shopping at the market and someone asked her how she managed to get her wheelchair into bed at night.

“I was so taken aback by that question that I just rolled away,” she recalled. “But later, after I told friends, I thought of a few answers I should have given like: ‘I have this huge ramp in my bedroom and I just slide down it into bed,’ or, ‘A sky hook hangs from the ceiling and hoists me like a piece of lumber into bed.’ ”

For 20 years Gordon, 50, has had multiple sclerosis, a chronic disease that attacks the central nervous system. She uses a wheelchair but is not “confined or bound” to it, she is quick to say.

She’s not house-bound either. “Terms like these,” she said, “conjure up images which are simply not true.”

What is true is that people who use wheelchairs don’t get to go to many parties. So Gordon created a way to bring a few laughs into the lives of other disabled people by organizing Sue’s Socialites--monthly parties for disabled people of all ages.

She has been organizing them for 17 years with the help of her parents, Shirley and Chick Schneider.

On a recent Saturday, they arrived at Mother’s Beach in Marina del Rey at 7 a.m. to secure a section of the picnic table area for Gordon’s last summer beach party, to take place at noon.

“She puts this together on her own. Her whole life is her telephone. We’re here to do what we can do because it’s very important to have the socializing--it’s the one thing that’s missing when it comes to services for the disabled,” said Shirley Schneider, 76.

Chick Schneider, 80, is not one for words. He acted as a waiter to the more than 40 guests and did other chores. He usually does the shopping. “These are Sue’s kids and we’re the mama and papa,” Chick Schneider said.

What Gordon accomplishes from her wheelchair is micro-management at its best. Her first parties were organized with a list of people interested in attending provided by the Westside Center for Independent Living. Through word of mouth, the parties have grown. During the holiday season, about 90 people attend; about 60 showed for a recent party.

Joe Zenzola, a retired graphic artist, helped Gordon when she first started the parties. They used to go shopping together. He has spina bifida--a congenital disorder of the spine.

“It’s very important for people in wheelchairs to get away from their everyday environment as well as for the general public to see us as individuals having a good time,” he said.

Gordon is undaunted by the task of organizing the party, which includes ensuring that people have transportation. “I’m not the type to ask for help, I only give it. It doesn’t make (sense) to sit home and watch the grass grow, I had to do something,” she said.

Gordon persuaded Cantor’s Deli to donate potato salad and cookies for the recent party. Shirley Schneider and many others cook. Although Gordon charges a nominal fee of $5 per person, it doesn’t come close to the $350 monthly cost for the special transportation needed for people using wheelchairs. Money is always a problem.

“I don’t have the funds, so I have to get donations and I’m running out, which means I’ll have to do less parties,” Gordon said. “When I started it, I never thought it would grow, but the more the merrier . . . let’s have lots and lots of people.”

Sue’s Socialites: (310) 836-1400 .