By Steven Sandberg
 
February 4, 2010
 
MEDFORD, Ore. - It is a hard truth that hundreds of teens in Southern Oregon experience homelessness, but some say they choose to live on the streets.
 
17-year-old Micah is one of those teens. Every night you can find him roaming the streets of downtown Ashland. However, any time he wants, Micah could be home, in a warm bed, he simply chooses not to.
 
"I'm not homeless, I have a place to stay. I try to help out the homeless as much as I can," he said.
 
He's among some homeless teens who decide that they prefer homelessness to their previous living situation.
 
"Freedom really. The place I was staying at I couldn't do what I wanted, couldn't pay for what I wanted, everything else. So why deal with it?" Homeless Youth Jerry Dickerson said.
 
Dickerson got in trouble with the law a few years ago after getting high on pills and setting fire to a house. In the time that followed, Dickerson said he couldn't handle the tight grip from his family. He packed what he could and decided sleeping in the park at night was a better alternative.
 
"The first month... sucked. I was really depressed about it. But then I started meeting friends, got into a little group, and it's great now. I've met a lot of cool people, I've had a lot of good times," Dickerson said.
 
Even with a few friends, he still has to sleep in the cold and constantly worry about nighttime attacks.
 
"It gets real dangerous in the parks at night, bike path at night, anywhere really... We kind of all got together, it's the only people we trust really. We look out for each other," Dickerson said.
 
Those who work with homeless kids say the so-called choice to be homeless isn't the whole story.
 
"I don't know if they ultimately choose to be there. I think what they end up is finding themselves there, and so it's a lot easier to accept where they're at by saying, 'I choose to be here', rather than saying 'I don't have any other alternative right now'," said Kevin Lamson, Executive Director of Hearts with a Mission.
 
Groups like Hearts with a Mission and the Maslow Project say the kids who actively seek out a homeless lifestyle are in the minority.
 
"There may be a honeymoon period where some kids find the liberty, or the freedom, that comes with living on the streets appealing, but I would say almost all of our kids who have experienced life on the street do not stay in that situation for long before they're ready to get out of that. It's scary, there's a lot of bad things that can happen to them," said Mary Ferrell, Executive Director for the Maslow Project.
 
The Hearts with a Mission House, located 521 Edwards Street in Medford, provides an emergency shelter for kids ages 10 to 17.
 
The Maslow Project for Homeless Kids offers services to those in need. That office is located at 209 West Main Street in Medford.