Who is Betty Lou Fern from Love, Stargirl and what is their importance?

Betty Lou Fern is Stargirl and Dootsie's neighbor who suffers from agoraphobia. Since her divorce nine years ago, Betty Lou hasn't left the house. Her agoraphobia is clearly tied to her depression because it first began when she felt like she didn't want to plant her flowers. That spread to not wanting to buy groceries at the grocery store and soon, not even wanting to get out of bed. She has doughnuts shipped to her house each week from Marge's Diner to lure Dootsie over for visits. Dootsie is in charge of bringing in the mail each day and cheering Betty Lou up when she is feeling low.