Eagle Scout Achieves a Rare Double Honor
Kai (Kianna) Nakaoka, a 17-year-old senior at John F. Kennedy High School in Sacramento, has achieved a rare honor in the Scouting world. Through the Buddhist Church of Sacramento’s scouting program, Kai earned the Eagle Scout rank, the highest rank in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), and the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest and most prestigious award in Girl Scouts of the USA.
“Everyone on the Board of Trustees has been so supportive of Scouting at the Sacramento Betsuin and of her Eagle Project - Kai would not have been able to accomplish anything without their support.’”
The Buddhist Church of Sacramento and the Buddhist Churches of America congratulate Kai Nakaoka on her rare double Scouting achievement. (February 18, 2024)
Since the BSA began admitting girls in 2017, few Scouts have achieved both the Eagle Scout rank and a Girl Scout Gold Award. Although exact numbers are unavailable, based on reports from news outlets around the country, since 2019, fewer than 10 girls have accomplished both. Also of note, according to the BSA and Girl Scouts of the USA, just 6 percent of Scouts attain the rank of Eagle and fewer than 6 percent earn a Girl Scout Gold Award.
Both of these performance-based achievements are defined by high standards and numerous requirements, including the planning and development of a service project. The service project must engage volunteers with a goal to help alleviate a problem in the community or to make a positive, lasting change in the world.
Kai’s Eagle Scout project supported Zak’s Closet, a free clothing boutique sponsored by the Lutheran Social Services of Northern California. Zak’s Closet provides clothing and accessories for transgender and nonbinary youth in Sacramento. Kai directed plans to remodel the boutique and conducted a clothing drive that ultimately yielded more than 1,200 articles of clothing, accessories, and jewelry, almost tripling the boutique’s inventory.
Kai’s Girl Scout Gold Award project focused on addressing the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) gap for girls by engaging them through robotics. Kai created 18 videos detailing robotic badges and also fundraised to purchase several sets of robotics kits, which she donated to the Girl Scouts Heart of Central California STEM Center. The kits will be used in afterschool programs to introduce youth to engineering and coding in engaging, inclusive and creative ways.
In addition to Scouting, Kai is an avid powerlifter. Co-founder of the JFK Powerlifting Club, Kai holds four international records, six national records, and 59 California state records in her powerlifting division. Kai has been a part of the FIRST global robotics community for 9 years. A top-ranked student at John F. Kennedy High School, she participates in the school’s Manufacture and Design (MAD) program.
Kai’s Eagle Court of Honor ceremony took place on February 18, 2024, at the Buddhist Church of Sacramento.
Written by Laurie Rich
Top row: Kai and her troop leader Julie Weng-Gutierrez; Kai preparing to gather clothes for Zak’s closet; and carrying the flag with BSA Troop 50G.
Bottom row: Kai as a powerlifting champion; learning about Buddhism; with her grandfather, to whom she dedicated her Eagle Award; and as a Girl Scout.