For 38-year-old foodpanda rider Benjamin Baetiong, June 18 was just another day on the job that has helped sustain his family’s needs since the pandemic started. Little did he know that this was the day he would gain the respect and support of a whole Army.

As early as 7:30am that day, Baetiong and other foodpanda riders noticed that there was a surge of orders for a special, limited edition BTS Meal from Mcdonald’s. By the time Baetiong was on his 5th BTS meal delivery of the day for eager Filipino fans of the phenomenal K-pop boy group, that was when he was inspired to post on his Facebook account, “Lakas ng BTS Meal ngayon. Umaarangkada na kaming mga foodPanda riders, masayang ide-deliver sa inyo ang BTS Meals. Kaya mga BTS fans diyan, gogogogo, order na kayo (So many people are ordering the BTS Meal today. foodpanda riders are happy to deliver your meals. BTS fans, please order more).”

This post was much appreciated by BTS fans, who are known as the Army, after they saw a lot of negativity online about the meal.

A Twitter account started a fundraiser for Baetiong,

“In light of the toxicity we face as a fandom toward some food delivery riders, this manong foodpanda rider stood out the most. At dahil sa sipag at tiyaga niya sa pagdedeliver ng BTS Meal para sa ating lahat, ang proyektong ito ay para sa kanya (This project is for him),” read the tweet.

Through this tweet, the account was able to raise Php40,500 over the initial target of Php7,000 for Baetiong.

Baetiong, who has been a foodpanda rider for a year since losing his job as a tricycle driver in Quezon City, is overwhelmed by the support. He is the only boy among four siblings, and he is using his earnings as a rider to support their family after their father suffered a stroke.

“Noong araw na iyon, 7:30am pa lang may surge na agad ng McDo BTS order. Sunod sunod napansin ko umaga pa lang. Kaya nung pang lima na order, nag post na ako sa Facebook ko na naghihikayat ako sa mga fans na umorder lang sila ng umorder at masaya kami na maghahatid ng BTS Meal. Nagulat ako nung nag viral! Naninginig ako sa tuwa, lalo sa mga comments na BTS fans din (I just noticed the surge in orders and I was happy to deliver the meals. When I learned that my post went viral, I was shaking. I was so happy reading the comments).”

Baetiong was even more shocked to learn about the fundraising. An Army messaged him and they arranged to meet at a McDonald’s branch in Cubao where the fans handed Baetiong their token of appreciation.

Baetiong said he would use to money for his father and their household expenses.

On the night of June 18, he received a call.

“Nung kinagabihan din ng June 18, may tumawag na manager ng McDo at tinanong ako saan ako pinaka malapit na branch na nakatira. At sinabi na papadalahan ako, at binigyan nga ako ng limang BTS meals at binigay ko naman sa mga kapatid ko na BTS fans din (A manager at McDonald’s called me and asked what the nearest branch to my house was. They sent me five BTS meals which I shared with my siblings who are fans of BTS!”

One of the reasons why he is so supportive of the fandom is because he understands how they feel about supporting their idols.

“Ako po ay K-pop and K-drama fan din, kaya naiintidihan ko ang mga BTS fans. May mga nag-message sa akin na binibilin na siguraduhin maayos yung wrapper, kaya ang ginagawa ko po sinasabi ko na sa staff ng McDo na ibalot sa hindi BTS na wrapper yung order, wala kasing plastic ang McDo (I am also a K-pop and K-drama fan. These days, I get messages from fans who request that I ensure the wrappers aren’t crumpled or wrinkled. What I do is I ask the staff at McDonald’s to use the normal wrappers so I can give the fans the clean ones).”

Baetiong is very happy to be a foodpanda rider. He signed up through the brand’s pandaTODA partnership with the Quezon City LGU under Mayor Joy Belmonte.

“Maganda sa foodpanda. Sa kaunting oras, mas malaki ang kinikita, basta mabilis at masipag mag deliver. Kaya naman masaya talaga ko dito. Nagpapasalamat ako sa pagkakataon na ito (I’m just happy to have this opportunity to earn money).”

His advice to other foodpanda riders? “Tuloy tuloy lang, think positive. Respeto sa mga customers kahit minsan mainit ang ulo nila. Intindihin ang excitement nila. Hindi ko ine-expect na ako ay hahanapin at bibigyan pa ng tulong dahil lamang sa simpleng post na iyon. Nagpapasalamat ako sa kanila [BTS ARMY Philippines] (Just think positive and respect our customers. We should understand why they are so excited. I’m just thankful to BTS Army Philippines for this).”

“We are proud to have Benjamin as part of our team that delivers our customer’s orders with care. They are our heroes on two wheels who take on the job to deliver convenience and even happiness to your doorstep,” said foodpanda managing director Daniel Marogy.