Paul Ulman Nelson

CHAPEL HILL, NC – Paul Ulman Nelson II, age 70, of Chapel Hill, passed away at Duke Regional Hospital on November 18, 2025. He shared his final sunset in the company of his daughter.

Born on October 11, 1955 in Mobile, Alabama and raised in New York City, Paul was the son of the late Paul Ulman Nelson and Evelyn Wu Nelson. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Elise Chapin Nelson.

Paul earned his master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he met Elise, beginning a partnership that shaped the course of his life. The couple later moved to the Hudson Valley, in New York where they decided to raise their children. Paul taught health and physical education at Beacon High School. He was a dedicated and spirited coach of both the men’s and women’s soccer teams for many years.

He is survived by his daughter, Emily Anne Rivvers and her partner AJ Musial, his son Greg Chapin Nelson and his partner Christine Catherall, and Paul’s two grandchildren, Evi James and Heath Orian.

Paul loved the warmth and generosity of the Chapel Hill community—a place that supported him through some of his brightest days and most difficult moments in his final years.

A service honoring Paul’s life was held at Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens, where he has been laid to rest.