Martin Brougham

Marty Brougham, aged 72, passed away on Sept. 21, 2022, in Billings, MT after battling cancer. Born Dec. 17, 1949, Marty was the youngest of the five children of Joe and Louise Brougham. He graduated from high school in Sterling, Colorado, where he excelled at basketball. After earning a bachelor's degree in Sociology from Northern Colorado University, Marty worked as a bartender and played a lot of pool before embarking on a career as a probation officer in Denver.

Through the course of his career, Marty was known to be smart, capable, and compassionate in working with the people on his case load. He was a pioneer in ideas of ‘restorative justice' – that society is best served by giving those convicted of crimes the opportunity to work to set their wrongs to right, as opposed to simply punishing them for having done wrong. It was also during his career with the State of Colorado that Marty met and married Sharmon Sullivan, the love of his life.

Marty loved watching and playing sports and was an avid Broncos fan. He also loved learning new things, music, camping, and traveling. He and Sharmon visited Costa Rica, South America, Mexico, Canada, the Pacific Islands, and Europe, and they also camped throughout the Rockies.

After retiring, Marty and Sharmon moved to Billings, where Marty collected and sold antiques and oddities, which he also used to decorate his property; most notably his ‘Man Shack', a place of legend, the site of many a horseshoe tournament, and countless deep conversations. They hosted many gatherings of family and friends, where everyone loved playing games, telling stories, and laughing. Marty was fun-loving, empathetic, and incredibly kind. He could always bring a smile and a laugh to others, and he will be dearly missed.

Marty is survived by his wife Sharmon; brothers Dave, Geoff, and John; sister Cathy; numerous nieces and nephews and all their beautiful families; and his dog Echo. A memorial service will be held at Dahl Funeral Chapel in Billings on Fri. Oct. 14 at 1 pm.