CACHE COUNTY -- A large banner was available in a Hyrum high school lunchroom Monday for students and faculty to write personal messages to a biology teacher they knew as Mr. Lizard.
Extra counselors and substitute teachers were sent to Mountain Crest High School to help with the first day back since the death of 56-year-old Larry Litizzette.
“He loved to mountain bike, to water ski, to snow ski – people would catch him going up every Friday trying to catch some skiing up at Beaver mountain,” said high school principal Robert Henke.
The beloved teacher was killed Saturday after he was hit by a train in Spanish Fork Canyon while hunting with his son.
Henke worked with Litizzette for many years and considered him a friend. The science teacher won numerous awards for his ability to connect with students.
“Most of all he was passionate about what he taught and about the students and so he was loved – never heard a negative thing about Larry Litizzette,” Henke said.
Students came to school Monday wearing suits and dresses in honor of their instructor.
“It’s amazing what social media can do,” the principal said. “We have a system that sends a mass text and the students actually coordinated that on their own last night.”
Litizzette taught at Mountain Crest for 29 years. He leaves behind a wife and three sons.
