If you didn’t see 60 Minutes on November 27th, please take a few minutes to watch “Hard Time Generation: Families Living in Cars.” Scott Pelly and Nicole Young’s story of the amazing Metzger children and their dad and other such families in Seminole County, Florida, is extraordinary by itself.But there are also links in the comments that enable you to provide help immediately and directly. And to help her family and other homeless families, you can follow 9th grader Arielle Metzger on her website and on Facebook.

School leaders like Beth Davalos, Seminole County Families in Transition Program Coordinator, who was featured on 60 Minutes, and similar coordinators, school counselors, and administrators in every county in Florida are unsung heroes working to keep families together and kids in school and in one piece, while at the same time dealing with grossly underfunded educational mandates to Race to the Top and Leave No Child Behind. In Florida alone, thousands of children’s daily learning is being severely compromised by the lack of daily bread, shelter, and emotional stability. Compound this across the country and that’s 1.35 million children, representing 43% of the homeless population—an 11% rise in this school year alone.

In this season of light, this 60 Minutes piece shines a bright spotlight on a national disgrace. But it should also should make us aware and thankful for the tireless leaders and teachers in schools, and their partners in community agencies and churches who do not turn away. We can also all examine what else we can do to help in our own communities and in the schools where all our children deserve the same opportunities, not just in this season of light, but continuously.