Who is Josie Jackson from Angel Fire East and what is their importance?

Josie Jackson has lived in Hopewell all of her life. She has a relationship with John Ross while he was in Hopewell fifteen years ago, and that relationship resumes when Ross returns in "Angel Fire East." Josie knows that John cannot promise her more than the present, and she accepts that. John Ross loves Josie, but he knows they cannot have a future together no matter how much he wishes they could.