“She used to babysit my kids,” said Sutherland, who is a vice-chairman of the Jefferson County Historical Society. “She used to love drawing pictures with them. My children enjoyed being around her because she was kind and fun to be with.” A few of the drawings Joplin made with Sutherland’s children are on display at the Museum of the Gulf Coast in Port Arthur in an exhibit dedicated to the “Me and Bobby McGee” singer.

It was Joplin’s kind side that drove Sutherland to apply for a historical marker through the Texas Historical Commission in her honor. In January 2008, the marker will be unveiled in front of the house that Joplin lived in throughout most of her youth, located at 4330 32nd St. in Port Arthur. The marker brings more vindication for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee whose accomplishments weren’t recognized in her hometown until almost 18 years after her death.

The local reaction to Joplin’s death, according to Enterprise news accounts, stands in sharp contrast to the response in the wake of the death of Chad Butler, known as Pimp C. Pimp C’s passing marks the death of the biggest pop music star from Southeast Texas since Joplin. But Pimp C’s place in the region’s music lore was established while he was alive.

Just five days before Pimp C was found dead in a Hollywood hotel room, he and musical partner Bernard Freeman, or Bun B, were approved for inclusion in the Museum of the Gulf Coast. The Port Arthur duo, known as UGK, will be enshrined alongside several other Southeast Texas music greats, a fraternity of musicians headlined by Joplin. Like Joplin, Pimp C’s life and death took on a national scope.