Who is Viola Moreno from Cold Fire and what is their importance?

Viola lives in Irving California. She is a Mexican-American woman of about fifty years of age who has flawless skin that is the tone of lightly tarnished copper. her eyes are a liquid black, but merry and radiate warmth. Slightly on the short side, and slowly broadening with age, she is still lovely enough to turn heads. Viola is a Vietnam war widow, having lost her husband in 1969 when she was just thirty and he was thirty two. Joe was a career Marine, and proud of it. To hear Viola talk, she is still equally proud of him and his service. Though the death had occurred some time ago, it profoundly affected her as he was so obviously the love of her life.

Viola taught junior high school in a classroom next to Jim Ironheart for ten years and her affection for him is genuine and motherly.