SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Veronica Morales, owner and CEO of Tahoe Heavenly Roofing Inc., says that she has a passion for making South Lake Tahoe better. Morales is part of the school attendance board, an active navigator at Encompass and was born and raised in the city. She wants to fund public safety, make city council a more comfortable place for others and to serve youth.
Morales was born and raised in South Lake Tahoe and said she is interested in improving the city for youth, having been through the school systems. “I have a great love and compassion for the families and people here who feel they have no voice,” she said, and highlighted the Latino community as an example. “My family fled genocide in El Salvador and Tahoe welcomed us, embraced our family. I want to make sure people feel that welcoming nature.”
After her husband had a near death experience last year, Morales said it activated her desire to run for city council. “I’ve always wanted to do this and that motivated me,” she said. Morales was one of the applicants for the open seat last year and indicated an interest in reducing gang violence and drug use among youth.
That comes from her interest in safety. Morales said she wanted to be a police officer when she was younger, which was only strengthened when her friend died of a drug overdose while they were still in middle school. “I want to make our community and better and safer place.”
She also is interested in diverting youth from homelessness, establishing more drug prevention programs, creating a youth center and a group home. “There’s a lot of kids whose families live paycheck to paycheck. A lot of locals do not have enough and that is a need I see.”
Morales’ top priorities are fire prevention, increasing and supporting public safety and housing. She also wants to prioritize locals at every step of the way.
“I am really interested in bettering fire prevention, helping police officers, firefighters and locals,” said Morales. “I have a rooted love of the community and the heart of Lake Tahoe is locals, so they have to come first. Locals truly love the land, love the lake and want to protect it, and I want to protect that from outside influence.”
Morales admits, “I can’t say I know all the answers, but I want to hear people out. I am open to learning and doing what’s best for our community.” While she has tried to participate in city council, she sees that is often not a space that people feel comfortable participating in.
“I want to change that culture because I’ve felt it. There’s a stereotype that if you don’t have money or success that people won’t care about what’s being said,” Morales said of city council’s current reputation. “There needs to be more unity in our city. And we have to change how people look at the government and make people feel like they matter.”
Morales says she wants Tahoe to feel like home for everyone—hence why she says “TaHOME is my home,” and emphasizes being welcoming. She also believes that Tahoe’s reputation could use more respect and transparency.
“I am going to do whatever it takes to do the right thing: to be transparent and serve the people, to hear out everybody’s needs and actually do what it takes to meet them. There’s not any other way,” said Morales. She expressed an excitement in potentially serving as the first Latina on city council.
Morales also believes her experience as a counselor gives her the ability to keep a calm head and navigate the conflicts among council as they arise. “At the end of the day, all of us want the same thing: what’s best for the city.”
Morales is excited to begin her campaign through the community and “organically go with the flow” to meet others. She expressed that she already felt there was a lot of support for her campaign.
