If you attended a high school football or basketball tournament in the state of Utah anytime in the past three or four decades, chances are you ran across Johnny Burt.
The short, skinny, bald, bespectacled man with an irascible sense of humor and an infectious smile was a ubiquitous presence at Utah High School Activities Association events for more than 30 years, serving as a volunteer, doing everything from handing out stat sheets to sweeping postgame floors. Along the way, he endeared himself to athletes, coaches, referees, statisticians, parents, fans, and everyone in between.
Burt died Wednesday morning from liver failure at the age of 66.
He was born with phenylketonuria (PKU), the build-up of an amino acid called phenylalanine in the body which can cause learning disabilities. The incurable disease is very rare, with fewer than 20,000 cases in the United States per year.
Burt grew up in South