AMERICAN FOOTBALL VIEW

The Baltimore Ravens' Haruki Nakamura is one of the only players in the NFL with a Japanese heritage and those ties never felt stronger as he led his teammates in raising over $60,000 in a charity event to go to earthquake and tsunami recovery efforts. Nakamura, Ed Reed, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice and other players signed autographs in Aberdeen, Maryland at Ripken Stadium Saturday afternoon.

Originally starting as just a discussion on how he could help Japan by raising much-needed relief funds, his idea blossomed as his teammates heeded his call and came to his aid in a quickly put-together event that drew over 3,000 fans to donate those funds to the American Red Cross.

Nakamura was touched by the thoughtfulness and sacrifice of time that his teammates willingly gave to support his own personal effort. His Ravens "family" proved that they are here for each other, be it on the football field during the season or dispersed around the country during the off season despite the NFL Lockout. Haruki should be proud of his ability to take the passion from his heart and have his teammates and friends join him in raising not only awareness but much needed funds for the horrific situation that continues in Japan.

See more on this story at Baltimore Ravens.com.