Charities say they have been inundated with requests from parents unable to provide their children with school supplies for the coming year.The Bermuda chapter of A Lott of Sista Love aims to help ten families struggling to buy uniforms, shoes and basic supplies.Coordinator Barbara Thomas believes the need is far greater than that. The charity is aware of 15 students and nursery school toddlers in need of assistance for the new school year and has a list of 120 people it assists on a regular basis.“We are a small charity but we do a lot and we’re seeing an increasing number of people in need of help due to unemployment,” she said.“There has also been an increase in calls for help from people who were cut off of financial assistance.“Most of the families we’re helping with the school drive this year live in single-parent households with children who have a variety of different needs.”It has previously been reported that fewer donations have left the Hands of Love Ministry struggling to meet increased demand for the clothing and food it provides as part of its back-to-school programme.Charity founder Fern Wade told The Royal Gazette last week: “This will be our 34th year running the back to school drive. I am dealing with all new families this year, families I haven’t seen before. I have a list of 400 families, so it looks like I will have to have a cut-off. We haven’t had any funds in because of the slow economic situation.”Ms Thomas said A Lott of Sista Love has also seen the effects of the rise in unemployment in Bermuda over the past year.She said one woman recently showed up in tears because she had no food to feed her child.“She had no money for rent, no food for her child, the child’s father does not give any financial support and this young mother was desperate.“We have people who were made redundant with children abroad in school who were forced to bring them back home or take them out of local private schools.“I’ve seen situations where people who lost their homes have had to move in with relatives just to make ends meet. Families are falling out due to the stress of it all and we see the fallout from it.”As a result the community is seeing a rise in “anger, bitterness, desperation, depression and despair”, she said.“And on top of that there is a lot of pride involved. People are afraid to come forward to ask for help because Bermuda is a judgemental society,” she said.“From where I sit, we see there’s a lot of people struggling in Bermuda today. I think it’s hidden because of pride and shame even though in some cases people are struggling with circumstances beyond their control.“We need to be more sensitive generally and stop judging people but by the same token we don’t want to simply be enablers. Our mission is to help empower women to help them move forward in life.”The Christian-based support group regularly holds workshops on financial budgeting, healthcare, and self-esteem.One of the most heart-wrenching cases they have dealt with so far was that of a young mother who was sleeping on the floor of her apartment with her two babies in a playpen.“A lot of these women are living pay cheque to pay cheque with no support from the fathers. But when we see lives lifted, when we help get people back up on their feet, it makes it all worthwhile,” she said.Ms Thomas said that of the ten families her charity is to assist, some have recently lost their job while others have been unemployed for long periods of time.“In some instances they cannot afford to clothe their children and in others it’s a choice between prescription medication or food. And there are a lot of parents going without to ensure that their children can eat.“And then there’s the added pressure of not knowing when that pink slip will come and the worries of how you’re going to live without a job.”Donations can be made directly to the charity’s HSBC account. They are also appealing for gift certificates from various outlets that sell school uniforms and school shoes and sneakers and grocery vouchers for food. For more information or to make a donation, e-mail aloslbermuda@yahoo.com.