Who is Uncle David from Winter Room and what is their importance?

Uncle David is an older man, who resides with Eldon and his family. He was married and widowed while still a young man in his homeland, Norwway. After his wife died in childbirth, David moved to America and settled in Minnesota to work in the logging camps. Uncle David is described as having been a strong and able woodcutter, capable of some incredible feats with an ax. He is also a wonderful storyteller, whose stories entertain the family as they sit in the winter room each night.