Leonard "Mahpevana’hane "Kills on the Water" Littlewolf

Leonard Littlewolf, Mahpevana'hane "Kills on the Water", was born on April 17, 1946 to parents Charles and Annie Limpy Littlewolf. He was the youngest child of the family, a little brother to his big brothers Cedric and Don and sister Patricia. He was an enrolled member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe and a direct descendent of both Chief Littlewolf and Chief Dull Knife. He was very proud of his lineage and his extended family members. His first language was Cheyenne, he was a fluent speaker, and he enjoyed speaking the language whenever he could.

Leonard was always full of stories from his life. He would happily tell people his first memory as a baby was lying on a bed in the house watching the fireplace, all alone and wondering where his family was. His family had gone to Sheridan to stock up on groceries, each thinking someone else was holding the baby. When it was discovered that Leonard was not there with them, a fast return trip was made. He would laugh as he remembered the hurried nature of someone rushing into the house and grabbing the baby they forgot.
During his early years, the family lived at Kirby, MT. The family moved along Kirby Creek with Charlie's jobs as a ranch hand and lived in tents. His childhood was a good time of life for Leonard. It was a hard life, especially in the winter, but there was also a lot of joy in the home. Grandpa "Donuts" Robert Red Woman and Grandma Mary Red Woman, Aunt Jessie Longjaw, and many cousins were frequent visitors. His favorite times were listening to Grandma Hattie Killsback tell stories to her grandchildren in the evenings, some of which he later told to his own children and grandchildren.
The family then moved to Busby and lived in a log house. Leonard attended Busby School and graduated in 1964. He always joked that he was a kindergarten dropout. Being a high achiever, he also was active in student government and participated in sports, even setting qualifying records in shotput and attending state. Leonard was very smart and always took pride in this. He would say maybe he was not the best athlete, but he was smart.

After graduation, Leonard attended Billings Business College. He also served two years in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. After basic training, he was stationed in South Korea and worked mostly in inventory and ammunition. After discharge, he participated as a member of the Northern Cheyenne Color Guard for many years. He represented at many special events and helped perform military burials. He was a long-time member of the American Legion and enjoyed keeping in touch with his army buddies and 'catching up'. One highlight was when his Army Sergeant reconnected with him in 2023 and was able to come to Montana for a visit.

He received training and worked at the Crisis Center in Busby as a mental health tech for a period of time. Being a strong advocate of education, he then took a position with the Northern Cheyenne Headstart Program. He remained with Headstart as Assistant Administrator for 44 years for many program components and retired in 2019. He was also known to drive the Headstart bus on occasion for the "cooks" which he thoroughly enjoyed. While at Headstart, his coworkers were his family, most notably Daryl Blackwolf and Bertha Otherbull.

In 1972, Leonard, as Busby District Representative, was working with a group of VISTA volunteers. One of the volunteers that he was working with was Linda Ruble from Illinois. They quickly became friends and on October 30, 1976, Leonard and Linda were married at the White River Cheyenne Mennonite Church in Busby. From this marriage two daughters were born: Alicia in 1977 and Erica in 1981.
Around this time, Leonard found sobriety. While working on his own recovery, he also helped many others who were struggling with alcohol addiction by leading local AA meetings. He became more involved with the Mennonite Church as time went on and was a member of the Church Council for many years. His faith and prayer became integral parts of his life, and he started every day thanking God for each new day and for his blessings. He loved singing from the Cheyenne hymnal and hearing scripture in the Cheyenne language.
Leonard was always busy at home. He could often be found working on something and listening to CCR, Lynnard Skynard, Sandy Nelson, and other music he loved (he loved music and was a band member/drummer in his younger years). He did leatherwork and created a beaded keychain design and made hundreds of them to give to visitors and friends from all over the U.S. and Canada. He loved the outdoors, cutting and chopping firewood, and gardening. He loved to travel and enjoyed annual visits with his Illinois family and traveling with the Mennonite Church including to Canada and Louisiana. He always enjoyed telling stories about his traveling adventures with Willis Busenitz, and some of his favorite stopping points on the Illinois trail were Wall Drug and Crazy Horse Memorial.
In his retirement he enjoyed spending time with family. He was often found visiting with his sister Patricia, going to movies, eating out with family, traveling with his daughters, and attending every event he could for his grandkids from symphony concerts to volleyball tournaments and pow wows. His primary adventure partners were his granddaughter Alayna and his granddog Terry, with their favorite stops being Hobby Lobby and Goodwill. He was an excellent grandfather, and his granddaughters knew they could always depend on him to be there. If he could he would, even if it meant discharging out of the hospital and heading straight to the event.

Leonard's health deteriorated in 2025. He was blessed to be cared for by his daughter Erica in the family home. It was always his wish to be in Busby. On February 15, he passed peacefully surrounded by his family. Leonard was a humble, generous, funny, and kind man. His presence will be missed by his family, but his lessons and stories will continue on.
He was welcomed by many who have made the same journey before him including Charles and Annie Limpy Littlewolf, brothers Cedric and Don Littlewolf, and sister Patricia Littlewolf Turnsplenty, granddaughter Serena Joy Killsnight, nephew Jay Littlewolf, and most recently nephew Jace Killsback.
Leonard is survived by his wife Linda Littlewolf, daughters Alicia Littlewolf and Erica Littlewolf, granddaughters Neveah Killsnight, Nyla Killsnight, Norah Killsnight, and Alayna Elkshoulder, nieces Pam Littlewolf and Dawn Keams, and his best friend granddog Terry. The extended family includes: Littlewolf, Limpy, Killsback, Long Jaw, Jones, Ruble, Dull Knife & Littlewolf descendents. Our apologies if we have forgotten any names and relationships.

The family would like to thank IHS Lame Deer, Aspen Meadows Rehabilitation, RD Bailey, Willis Busenitz and Suzette Shreffler for their care and compassion in Leonard's last phase of life.