Who is Eva Shapiro from After the Rain and what is their importance?

Eva Shapiro is Rachel's grandmother. =Married when she was just a teenager, she is described as spirited, independent, beautiful, practical and good with money. Eva died before Rachel's birth, but she was the love of Izzy's life. He still painstakingly cares for her houseplants, which are older than Rachel. Only after Izzy's death does Rachel learn from her Uncle in England that she looks almost exactly like Eva.