Who is Berthe from Swimming Lessons and what is their importance?

Bertha is the apartment building superintendent. She is a hard working middle-aged Yugoslavian woman who spends much of her time trying to get her husband and son to be hard working too. She is demonstrative, loud, and unconcerned about how she is perceived by her neighbors when she yells at her spouse or son. Her husband works in a factory but occasionally yields to alcohol, which Bertha calls "booze," one of her few English slang terms.