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RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif., June 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Toastmasters International, the world's largest non-profit organization dedicated to teaching skills in public speaking and leadership, announced its featured speakers for the upcoming Toastmasters International Convention in Orlando, Florida. Leadership expert John C. Maxwell has been selected to receive the 2012 Golden Gavel award, an honor presented annually to an individual distinguished in the fields of communication and leadership. A dinner will be held in his honor on Friday, August 17. Joel Manby has been selected to deliver the keynote address at the opening ceremonies on Wednesday, August 15.

"As a Toastmasters leader, I have personally benefited from Mr. Maxwell's practical insights on leadership," says Michael Notaro, Toastmasters' 2011-2012 International President. "He is a powerful presenter, whose philosophies on servant leadership closely align with the Toastmasters volunteer leader community."

Maxwell joins an illustrious list of Golden Gavel honorees that includes Stephen Covey, Anthony Robbins, Zig Ziglar, Tom Peters, Deepak Chopra and Ken Blanchard. He is an internationally renowned motivational speaker, leadership coach and best-selling author who has sold more than 20 million copies of his books worldwide.

"It's quite an honor," Maxwell says of being selected as the 2012 recipient. "Toastmasters is the premier speaking organization, so to be given an award by them is to be recognized by one's peers. It doesn't get much better than that."

Manby is president and chief executive officer of Herschend Family Entertainment, the largest U.S. family-owned theme park corporation, headquartered in Norcross, Georgia. A Harvard University MBA graduate, Manby spent 20 years in the auto industry, working for brands such as Saturn, GM and Saab. He was an instrumental member of the Saturn start-up team that launched the company's marketing and distribution strategy. In 2010, Manby was featured in an episode of the American television show "Undercover Boss," in which he demonstrated his unique approach to leadership: Lead with love instead of power. He shares his leadership insight and advice in his new book, "Love Works."

To learn more about the Toastmasters International convention, visit www.toastmasters.org/convention.

For more information about John Maxwell, visit www.johnmaxwell.com, and for more on Joel Manby, check out www.joelmanby.com.

About Toastmasters International
Toastmasters International is a nonprofit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of clubs. Founded in October 1924, the organization currently has more than 270,000 members in 13,000 clubs in 116 countries. Each week, Toastmasters helps more than a quarter million people of every ethnicity, education level and profession build their competence in communication so they can gain the confidence to lead others. For information about local Toastmasters clubs, please visit www.toastmasters.org. Follow Toastmasters International on Twitter @Toastmasters.

SOURCE Toastmasters International