TOWN & COUNTRY FARMS
   
       The late Alec Courtelis and his wife, Louise, are the founders of the famous Town & Country Farms in Micanopy, Florida. Alec was born to Greek parents in Alexandria, Egypt in 1927. At the end of World War II, Courtelis came to the United States " because I felt that this was the place where I could feel free to do what I wanted to do." Courtelis enrolled in the University of Miami. He spent the one sum of money his father had given him and never received any more because of the Palestinian War at home. To fund his studies, he worked on construction jobs, cleaned dance clubs, and did lawn work for a couple in exchange for room and board. He earned a BS in civil engineering and practiced engineering for five years before starting a construction business with several partners. Courtelis later bought his partners out and continued running the company. The Courtelis Companies were responsible for major real estate projects throughout Florida. Courtelis, a member of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, served as chairman of the Board of Regents of Florida's State University System until his death in 1996.         

         The benefactor was the driving force behind The Alec P. & Louise H. Courtelis Equine Teaching Hospital at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. The hospital provides high quality referral services in a farm setting. Courtelis was also a benefactor of The Courtelis Center, which is part of the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami School of Medicine in Florida. Courtelis was a cancer patient at the Center.  Alec was heavily involved in national politics - he was a presidential elector for Florida in 1992 and worked in the 1996 presidential nomination campaign of Republican Phil Gramm. 

       Louise Courtelis is a member of the board of trustees at the University of Florida. She has also continued the Alec Courtelis Scholarship Awards, which are given annually to exceptional international graduate and undergraduates. Louise Courtelis is a graduate of University of Miami. She was also a presidential elector Florida in 1992. She has continued her husband's love for Arabian horses through Town & Country Farms. The farm was the home of the legendary Arabian stallion Wiking, whose sons and daughters earned over $6 million. Thirty-three of his foals have won 49 Darley Award nominations and 12 of them won 17 Darley Award. Wiking helped Town & Country Farms earn the coveted title of Darley Award Breeder of the Year four times. Flaming Tigre, Tomanchie and Esmet Arbi now stand at the Florida farm. The Town & Country team is now made up of the Courtelis family and CEO Sonny Werneth. In 2004, Town & Country won seven races from 35 starters at Los Alamitos to rank fifth in the local Arabian standings.