Maddi Froiland 2015 works as a communications officer for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land. This holiday season, Bethlehem has not had its usual Christmas lights and festivities due to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.  According to a December 6, 2023 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article about Froiland, the West Bank has been anxious and somber since the war began in October. Froiland reports her Palestinian friends live in fear of raids and arrests. Her neighbors, weary of war, want peace and security. As it is, the war has disrupted their lives and their livelihoods. Froiland stayed in solidarity with the Palestinians rather than returning home when the war broke out.