Flexing mussels What does the future hold for outgoing head of Economic Development Winnipeg? The only certainty is more time for Friday Night Mussels By: AV Kitching Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Tuesday, May. 2, 2023

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/05/2023 (858 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dayna Spiring is not going into politics. She is adamant about that. It’s a question she’s been asked many times, by many different people, and her answer is always the same: NO.

“My husband has told me he will divorce me if I run for politics. I am not running for politics,” she says with a laugh.

Spiring has been fielding the question even more often since she announced she was leaving her post as the president and CEO of Economic Development Winnipeg (EDW) after more than seven years in the role.

Will she miss it?

“This job wears on you after a while. I am ready to take some space. I still have fire in my belly to start something new but I am not sure what that’s going to look like yet,” she says in mid-April, two weeks after announcing her departure.

When we first met back in August 2022 to cook her comfort food dish — Friday Night Mussels — the 45-year-old had given no indication that her tenure at EDW was coming to an end. At that time she was full of excitement about the upcoming launch of the Winnipeg-to-Los Angeles flights, which she had been working on since 2016.

It’s one of the proudest moments of her career, one that includes spearheading the Jets whiteout street parties, and successful bids to host the 2023 World Police & Fire Games and the 2025 Grey Cup.

“L.A. was the first new destination that Winnipeg got since 2016 and it’s been a game-changer,” she says. “We are going to announce one more on May 11. Slowly and surely we are making progress in an environment that has been very tough.”

Another achievement she’s proud of is her contribution as honorary chair of a United Way campaign, raising the most money Winnipeg has ever raised for the charitable organization, a whopping $22.7 million that will be invested in various community efforts addressing the likes of mental health and addiction, homelessness, disability supports and those dealing with poverty.

They are issues close to her heart. Spiring admits if she had a magic wand, they would be the first things she’d fix. She’s realistic enough to know it will take more than spells to change things, but continues to believe in the best of the city, hoping more of us will start to do the same.

“I think we are very self-deprecating,” she says. “I don’t know if it’s our humble Prairie roots, but we are never the first to talk about the good stuff. We focus a lot on the negative things. Often times we look at other cities and think we don’t measure up but I think this is a great place to live and work and be able to have a career.”

Born in Brandon, Spiring moved to Winnipeg when she was 11. She was a studious child, a “rule follower, not one of the cool kids,” who became more athletic when she started junior high.

Encouraged by her gym teacher to try new things, she started running and playing badminton competitively. And although she didn’t continue competitive sport, she is still very much focused on fitness, waking up every day at 6 a.m. to get to the gym, where she exercises for an hour before starting her workday. It’s something she does even when doesn’t want to.

“I am hard on myself; I am probably my own worst critic,” she says. “I make myself do it because I feel it’s the right thing to do. Exercise allows me to clear my head, think through issues, work through frustration. Your mind can kind of spin, but when I am focused on exercise it gives me clarity… it gives me a moment to think about things.”

She won’t miss the stressful aspect of the job that required her to deal with government processes and systems — some of which are “antiquated” — and although she will miss the energy and excitement of her team, she’s very much ready to throw schedules out of the window and relax for a bit.

“We bought a cottage when we got married 18 years ago and I have never spent one full week out there,” she says, referring to her husband, wealth manager Charlie Spiring. “This might be the summer that I get to do that. There may be an opportunity to do broader travel and do different things.

“The possibilities are endless and I am excited to get some time to figure that out.”

It’s telling that one of her biggest regrets is not taking time off. If she could go back and change one thing about her past, it would have been to take a break when she was at the Canadian Wheat Board, where she moved from her role as legal counsel to chief strategy officer and general counsel with no break in between.

“I was insecure at the time and worried that people might forget about me, that if I took the time I would not have the same opportunities. I wish I had more confidence in my life. I am doing that for myself now. I am taking the time.”

Asked if someone so disciplined will be able to relax for long periods of time, she laughs.

“It’s time to pass the baton. I am ready to take a break and pause.”

av.kitching@winnipegfreepress.com

Friday Night Mussels

Adapted from a Chatelaine recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Makes: 2 servings
Cooking time: 7 minutes

1-kg (2.2-lb) bag fresh mussels
2 shallots
1 small chipotle in adobo sauce, drained and seeded
1 garlic clove
30 ml (2 tbsp) butter
80 ml (1/3 cup) tequila
80 ml (1/3 cup) 35 per cent cream
1 ml (1/4 tsp) salt
1 tomato
30 ml (2 tbsp) chopped fresh coriander, for garnish

Scrub mussels. Pinch any thread clusters at sides of mussels and pull to remove. Discard any open mussels. Finely chop shallots. Remove chipotle from sauce and finely chop 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp). Mince garlic. Melt butter in a large wide saucepan set over medium heat. Add shallots, chipotle and garlic. Stir often until soft, two minutes. Add tequila, cream and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally to thicken, one to two minutes.

Meanwhile, chop tomato. Stir mussels and tomato into cream. Cover and continue cooking on high, stirring halfway through, until mussels open, four to six minutes. Remove from heat. Discard any unopened mussels. Taste and stir in more chipotle if you wish. Spoon into bowls. Pour sauce over top. Sprinkle with coriander. Wonderful with crusty bread for dipping.

AV Kitching
Reporter

AV Kitching is an arts and life writer at the Free Press. She has been a journalist for more than two decades and has worked across three continents writing about people, travel, food, and fashion. Read more about AV.

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