Residents enjoy the buffet salad bar at lunchtime.

For Carole Barrish, who has diabetes, the typical “one big meal” that retirement community dining rooms traditionally serve fits neither her lifestyle nor her health considerations.

That’s just one reason Barrish is so excited about the introduction of the My Choice dining program at The Terraces of Los Gatos.

“I think the name of it is perfect. We will have choice, and that’s very important,” says Barrish, a resident and co-chair of the Dining Services Committee. “Because I’m diabetic, I’m very careful about what I eat and how much and how often. Consequently, I feel it’s a much better situation for me.”

Set to launch in August, My Choice will give residents the opportunity to freely choose when, where and how they eat without being penalized for skipped meals, lighter appetites or dietary considerations.

The old-style “use it or lose it” approach to dining meant meals could only be used for a single seating, and if a resident didn’t use his or her allotted meal for the day, its value was lost.

But My Choice retains the value of that single meal. Unused dollars roll over to the next month to a maximum of 150 percent of the monthly allowance. That means residents have the option of eating lighter, more frequent meals or splurging on themselves and guests by ordering dinner from the more upscale Premiere Menu, a nightly selection of fine dining options.

“Our residents want value for what they’re paying to live here. With My Choice, it gives them that value and that choice to select from a higher level of menu,” says Nathaniel Runas, dining services director at The Terraces. “It’s freedom and choice, and it doesn’t get any better than that.”

My Choice dollars can also be used at other on-campus dining venues, such as the farmers market, as well as room service and catering. Additional options, including a juice-and-smoothie bar and a bistro that serves salads and sandwiches, are being considered, Runas says.

The adoption of My Choice has meant the need for an expanded level of communication with residents to let them know they’ll benefit from the change, Barrish says. As part of her research on the program, she traveled to Fresno to speak with residents at ABHOW sister community San Joaquin Gardens, which launched My Choice last year.

“They all feel this is a much better program than the one they were on,” she says. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m all for this change.”