Stories That Move People—and Move Them Toward Change

David Magee is a bestselling author and nationally recognized speaker who helps students, families, educators, leaders, and communities confront difficult realities and move toward greater connection, resilience, purpose, and joy.

His programs address mental health, substance misuse, family wellbeing, leadership, and personal growth with a rare combination of emotional honesty, practical insight, warmth, and hope. David does not simply describe the problems people face. He helps audiences recognize what may be stealing their wellbeing, understand what change requires, and see a path toward the life, family, or culture they want to build.

David speaks nationwide for schools, universities, churches, nonprofit organizations, companies, conferences, and community gatherings. Whether addressing students, parents, educators, executives, or an entire town, he creates the kind of experience people continue talking about long after the event ends.

A Message Grounded in Lived Experience

David’s authority begins with his own family’s journey.

His son William, a University of Mississippi Honors College student and SEC track athlete, died from an accidental drug overdose not long after graduation. His younger son survived a near-fatal overdose and went on to rebuild his life through recovery, family, faith, and purpose. His daughter faced her own battle with anxiety and an eating disorder, finding recovery and building a life she once feared might not be possible.

David also had to face his own substance misuse, a struggling marriage, and a life that no longer matched the person he wanted to be.

This was never just one person’s story. It touched the entire family. They rebuilt together—through honesty, forgiveness, recovery, faith, difficult conversations, and the daily work of learning how to live with greater joy and connection.

That experience gives David’s message unusual depth. He understands both the fear of losing someone and the quiet danger of living far below one’s potential. His work is about saving lives—but it is also about helping people become more fully alive.

From Story to Impact

David is the author of the award-winning memoir Dear William, a national bestseller now being produced as a feature film, and the forthcoming Walk With Me, which follows a father and son rebuilding their lives together.

He helped create the William Magee Center for AOD and Wellness Education and the William Magee Institute for Student Wellbeing at the University of Mississippi. Through his speaking, writing, and educational work, he has reached more than 75,000 students, parents, educators, and community members nationwide.

David brings more than personal testimony to the stage. Before dedicating his work to wellbeing, he was a newspaper publisher, media company president, nationally distributed television and radio host, and business author who studied and wrote about iconic companies including Toyota, John Deere, and Ford.

That range allows him to speak with equal credibility about a struggling family, a student under pressure, a community seeking healing, or an organization working to build a healthier and more purposeful culture.

More Than Inspiration

David’s talks are candid, deeply human, often funny, and ultimately uplifting. Audiences leave thinking differently about their choices, their relationships, the people around them, and how to better communicate, and what may still be possible.

For selected programs, David may also be joined by members of his family, offering audiences a rare, multigenerational view of addiction, eating-disorder recovery, grief, marriage, forgiveness, and what it truly means for a family to heal together.

To have David speak at your next corporate, school or community event, contact Michael Rosenberg at APB Speakers at mrosenberg@apbspeakers.com.