STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Next Saturday could be a very busy day at the Penn State HUB.

State College Mayor Bill Welch is set to preside over a commitment ceremony for several same-sex couples.

A few protest groups have already applied for permits to protest.

One group is teaching people how to deal with these protesters, so the ceremony isn't interrupted.

Silent Witness of Central Pennsylvania works to provide a "buffer zone" between protesters and the participants of commitment ceremonies.

Volunteers use rainbow colored umbrellas to create that buffer zone.

About 100 people attended Saturday's training session.

Along with the session, the Unitarian Universalist Church of State College ran a half-page ad in a local newspaper supported Mayor Welch's decision.