Spread the word: Help send Scouters to conferences at Philmont Training Center

philmont-ambassador-patchThere’s another side to Philmont where training, not trekking, takes center stage.

The Philmont Training Center, the BSA’s national volunteer education facility, hosts more than 5,000 Scouters and family members each summer for its signature weeklong courses. 

But even though everyone’s heard of Philmont — aka “Scouting paradise” — not everyone knows about the conferences designed to educate volunteers in all areas of the program, from Cub Scouts to Venturing.

That’s where the new Philmont Training Center Ambassador program steps up. This council-level volunteer is responsible for promoting PTC training opportunities within his or her council.

What’s in it for you? And how do you become your council’s PTC ambassador? Read on…

Randy Sorensen, one of the first Ambassadors, shows off his fleece jacket at the Philmont Training Center display.
Randy Sorensen, one of the first Ambassadors, shows off his fleece jacket at the Philmont Training Center display.

For any unit-level volunteer, an Ambassador in each council means a local conduit to the PTC even if you’re thousands of miles from New Mexico. The Ambassador is your link to the PTC, a person with whom you can communicate concerns and feedback, suggest ideas for future conferences, or learn more about attending a weeklong course with your family.

And for the Ambassadors themselves, there’s the exclusive patch seen above. The first 150 Ambassadors to sign up receive a special fleece jacket.

There are already 44 approved Ambassadors, while 22 more  await approval.

That means roughly three-fourths of the local councils out there are still looking for an Ambassador. It could be you.

How to apply

Interested in becoming your council’s PTC Ambassador?

Start by visiting this site and filling out the official application. You’ll be asked about your Scouting background and your experience attending PTC conferences. I’d guess that the more conferences you’ve attended, the better equipped you’d be for this role.

You’ll mail or fax your completed application to the PTC, and they’ll contact your council Scout Executive for approval.

Good luck, and say it with me now: “I wanna go back to Philmont!”

What do you think?

Have you taken a PTC course? What was your favorite part?


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.