Spike Bighorn

Spike Norman Bighorn, Dakota name “Sung gdeska agdi” or “Brings Home Spotted Horses,” 65, died Nov. 23, 2025, at the University of Oklahoma Medical Center.

His love for his family and community was the most important thing to him in life (although he considered sports, basketball in particular, as his first love).

He was born on May 23, 1960, in Poplar. His parents, Doremis Hollow Bighorn and Alpheus ‘Sonny’ Bighorn Jr., were young working parents who received help with raising Spike from Spike’s maternal grandparents, Norman Hollow and Vera Bertelsen Hollow. The family divided their time between the Hollow Ranch, located between Brockton and Culbertson and the town of Brockton.

He was a 1978 graduate of Brockton High School and earned an athletic scholarship to play basketball for Miles Community College in Miles City. He went on to graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson State University and earned a master’s degree in business administration with an emphasis on American Indian entrepreneurship from Gonzaga University.

He was a 2018 inductee in the Montana Indian Athletic Hall of Fame and was one of the first Native referees to officiate a state basketball tournament in Montana. He paved the way for many to follow his example and led a life of impact. He was respected and admired for his many talents working with youth, young professionals, elders and people from every walk of life. He showed up for everyone in moments of tragedy and celebration.

He had a heart for helping people and giving back to his community, which guided his career choices. He held many professional public service leadership roles throughout his career. He served as the tribal chairman for the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation for two years and was on the tribal executive board (tribal council) for eight years. He held numerous