For 86 years, Camp Oyo in Portsmouth — as a gathering point for the Boy Scouts of America in southern Ohio — has helped turn boys into men.

That legacy is in jeopardy of coming to an end as the core group of volunteers who maintain it continue to age and are no longer able to do as much as they used to.

This isn’t a Portsmouth problem. It isn’t a Scioto County problem. Maintaining this camp is something that should be important to anyone who loves and supports scouting in southern Ohio, which includes three troops here in Lawrence County.

Volunteers try to get together once a month to give the camp and its aging structures some much-needed TLC.

They could certainly use some more help.

We would like to see Boy Scout, Cub Scout and Girl Scout troops from across the entire region make this a service project and unite to help save the camp that is part of our region’s heritage and legacy.

We would also like to see civic organizations, business professionals and community members who have been touched by Scouting collaborate to lend financial and “sweat equity” help.

Participation in the Boy Scouts is not what it once was and will likely never recapture those glory days. But, Scouting can still have an impact on countless youth for decades to come and Camp Oyo can continue to be a part of that.