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Running brings hope

Melissa Marr, center, stands at the starting line of the Long Beach Marathon and Half Marathon before running in the half-marathon. This was the former homeless meth user's fifth half-marathon.

Melissa Marr, center, stands at the starting line of the Long Beach Marathon and Half Marathon before running in the half-marathon. This was the former homeless meth user’s fifth half-marathon.   (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

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Melissa Marr’s alarm pierces the silence in her room at the homeless shelter. 5:40 a.m.In the darkness, she leans over and kisses her 3-year-old daughter, rolls out of the bed and wakes her 8-year-old son, still snuggled up in the mismatched floral sheets next to his sister.Read Nicole Santa Cruz’s story Running moves Tustin woman from homelessness to hope

Early morning run

Melissa Marr pushes daughter Purdy, 3, in a stroller as Marr runs in the early morning hours before sunrise, training for the Long Beach Half Marathon. Marr got into running when she moved into Village of Hope in Tustin and heard about the group Up and Running Again, which trains residents there for races.  (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Bedtime story

Melissa Marr reads to daughter Purdy as they spend the evening in their transitional apartment at Village of Hope.   (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Time to relax

Melissa Marr, daughter Purdy, 3, and son Jakob, 8, relax at night in their place at Village of Hope. Marr needs a good night’s sleep so she can get up early to train for half-marathons.  (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Scenic route

Melissa Marr gets in 11 miles with the Up And Running Again group at the Back Bay in Newport Beach the last weekend before the Long Beach Half Marathon.   (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Fellowship dinner

Melissa Marr, left, laughs with Gina Ortiz, center, during a weekly dinner before a fellowship with NorthEast of the Well, a nondenominational ministry where Marr now works.  (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Making beautiful music together

Melissa Marr listens as fiance Levi Dominguez plays an impromptu tune on a piano at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church. They were there for a fellowship and dinner with NorthEast of the Well, a nondenominational ministry where Marr works and Levi volunteers. It is where they met.   (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

Proposal

Levi Dominguez proposes to Melissa Marr after her valedictory speech at her graduation from the Village of Hope’s two-year program. The couple hope to open a barbecue restaurant together someday.  (Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

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