It’s the first ever Ben’s Day at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen across Edmonton, in celebration of a little boy who brought the city together both in joy and grief.
“Just the idea to make Ben’s Day something for the whole community is really cool,” said Mike Stelter, the father of Ben Stelter: a passionate Edmonton Oilers fan whose battle with brain cancer and how the team supported him captivated the community.
The idea for Ben’s Day came about after parents Mike and Lea Stelter met Kyle Ferbey about a year ago.
Ferbey is with the franchise group that owns all the Popeyes fast food restaurants in Edmonton and northern Alberta – and he quickly learned Ben was a big fan of their fried chicken and southern sides.
“I found out that Ben’s favourite meal was from Popeyes,” Ferbey said.
“Whenever he would leave the hospital or on his birthday, he would always request Popeyes.”
Ben’s go-to meal was spicy chicken, mac and cheese and cajun French fries.
Ferbey knew he had to do something special to honour Ben; so from now on every May 27 will be Ben’s Day at Popeyes.
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“To have an opportunity to do something for the community that I know is going to make a big difference in our city – it’s something that I feel so good about and absolutely love being a part of,” Ferbey said.
The net proceeds from participating stores in Edmonton and Northern Alberta will go to the Ben Stelter Foundation.
“Edmonton is a community like no other,” Mike said.
“The way they rallied around Ben, our family and the foundation is incredible and we’ve been able to help so many kids like Ben — which is what he wanted so bad.”
Ben was a huge Oilers fan. The team, and all of Edmonton, embraced him through his cancer fight.
The team viewed the six-year-old, who died from an aggressive glioblastoma brain cancer in August 2022, as its bright light and good luck charm.
A huge Oilers fan, Ben’s dream was to meet Connor McDavid. Dressed in an Oilers jersey and McDavid socks, that dream came true when Ben skated to centre ice with his hero for the anthems.
The team pledged before the start of the 2021-22 season they would play La Bamba after every win at Rogers Place in honour of long-time locker room assistant Joey Moss.
Ben became known for telling the team to “Play La Bamba, baby!” and became a household name in Edmonton and beyond.
To this day, the Mexican folk song still echoes throughout Rogers Place when the team wins a game.
Tuesday, May 27, 2025 would have been his 9th birthday.
“The overwhelming support from the community, the messages we got today even before making a single post — people reaching out saying ‘thinking of you today’ and wishing Ben a happy birthday is so special,” Mike said.
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