Matt Burke Timeline & Summary

Matt works most of his life as a high school teacher in Jerusalem's Lot. Not the most exciting life, but he doesn't seem to mind.
Matt meets Ben in Dell's Place, and they hit it off.
Matt talks to Ben about the Marsten House and its evil past, as well as the strange goings-on in town.
A night or so later, he runs into Mike Ryerson, a former student in the bar. Mike is so sick that Matt invites him home.
At his house, Matt hears the vampire Danny Glick invited in, and hears him suck Mike's blood. Bleah.
The next night, Mike returns. Matt confronts and banishes him with a cross but suffers a heart attack. Susan Norton, who is in the house at the time, calls the ambulance.
Matt and Ben organize to fight the vampires with the help of Susan, Father Callahan, Jimmy Cody, Matt's doctor, and eventually Mark Petrie.
Since Matt is confined to the hospital, he takes charge of research, and reads up heavily on the occult. Reading is the English teacher's superpower.
Matt has a heart attack and dies while Ben, Mark, and Jimmy are still out trying to find and kill Barlow.