ALBANY — Orrisdean Lawson McGill’s journey to becoming a pillar of the city started on a bus driven by her brother, with a loudspeaker preaching the Gospel and handing out the best burnt hot dogs in town.
Her brother founded the Second Chance Ministry of the New Life Church of Christ in Albany, and when he died, McGill took over the work and “put her own twist on it,” her daughter, Detra Bolden, said Tuesday. The twist was a thrift store for much-needed household items, which she eventually began giving away.
McGill’s work was honored Tuesday as her family and city officials gathered to present her with the Henry Johnson Award for Distinguished Community Service. “You made me feel like I was the president,” Mayor Dorcey Applyrs said of the outpouring of joy on the other end of the phone when she called earlier this year to tell McGill that she had won one of the city’s highest honors…