@Jeffrey ******
I had something similar. Koh Yai Yai , days after it was possible to enter Thailand via Phuket after the lockdown. The private owner of the accommodation broke down in uncontrollable tears. She hadn't been able to pay for wifi so didn't know she had a booking even. She had been sneeking to the beach at night to get crabs and seaweed for soups and some nutrition, grew a few vegetables in the garden to get by and eating the cheapest sausage from the store. She didn't want to take from the minimal food programme on this tiny island as she said the elderly and kids needed it more than her. We were her first guests in over 2 years. 😔
There were 8 young cats running about. Somebody had dumped them as little kittens in her garden knowing that she was fond of cats. She had managed to take care of them too with her tiny budget.
When we heard this, we extended the stay, gave amazing review, and ate her amazing home cooking 3x a day rather than going to restaurants to boost her income, hired her spare motorbike, bought her beer rather than a bar, paid her for laundry, ironing, anything we could think of. Obviously tips too.
Yes, it's not always about saving some baht unfortunately 😔.