Carolina, shrugged off the snub. Miss Mark mentioned it in passing when updating her mother, Francine Adams of Greenfield Twp., on the wedding planning.

Mrs. Adams was incredulous.

"What do they mean?" she asked. "This is discrimination. It's not right."

She mentioned the incident on her Facebook page. When people called it a hoax, she posted a copy of the email, which was shared hundreds of times and reproduced on some blogs, setting off a social media firestorm. Mrs. Adams said she feels encouraged by the response on Facebook, which has been overwhelmingly supportive of her and her daughter, who are visiting other venues and hoping to secure a date for next summer or fall.

None of this was news to John Dawe, executive director of the NEPA Rainbow Alliance. He hasthe Abingtons' email "the most polite example of anti-gay discrimination I've ever seen" and also completely legal under current state law.

Pennsylvania is the only state where same-sex couples enjoy marriage equality without basic civil rights.

"This lack of protection affects our neighbors, friends and family," she said.

So far, 34 municipalities in Pennsylvania passed ordinances that prohibit discrimination against LGBT citizens. Locally, these include cities of Scranton and Pittston.

Lisa Stanvitch

of Scranton said she and her partner were turned down by the Inne at the Abingtons in 2007, when they wanted to have a commitment ceremony.

"They could have just called it two women having a party," she said. "Instead, we got an email saying they were afraid of backlash from churches and the community. When I heard about this latest one,