"Building a church of stone will happen, but building a church of people is a lifetime journey," says Father Anthony Astudillo, pastor of St. Lorenzo Ruiz in Walnut.

Indeed, the upcoming nine-day celebration honoring the past and preparing for the future reflects Father Astudillo's thoughts about the building blocks of church --- both human and brick.

Starting Sept. 19 and running through Sept. 28, the celebration culminates on the Feast Day of St. Lorenzo, one of the first Filipino saints to be named and a beloved figure in this predominantly Filipino community.

Part fundraiser, part parish socialization and part spiritual journey, the nine days feature activities that should appeal to a wide range of parishioners, says Naomi Lewis, president of the parish advisory council.

"We tried to fill the days with activities that would pull in people and get them involved," she says about last year's celebration that is now a tradition. "We want them to feel like a family, and maybe that will result in more participation in our fundraising."

"I think the real problem, not just with our parish, but maybe others, is that we have 20 percent active parishioners who work real hard and are very involved," continues Lewis. "These events are more about sharing your time and who you are. If we get only 40 percent active [from this celebration], it will really boost our parish life.

"After all, we are following what our pastor says: 'At the end of the day, it's all about relationships.'"

Established only 17 years ago, the parish used a warehouse and an old school building as a church until a temporary structure --- always envisioned as a parish hall --- was built and dedicated in 1996, and for 12 years served the community of 2,000 registered families. Now, with the parish growing rapidly, it's time to raise enough money to start the building process, says Lewis.

"Our deadline to reach our goal of $4.2 million is the last Sunday of September," she says. "We are short $800,000 but we think we can achieve that."

While other parishes hold carnivals and fiestas as major fundraisers, St. Lorenzo is offering a wide variety of events over multiple days to get parishioners to see more of the church outside of Sunday mornings.

The events include a nine-day novena, bingo night, youth day, 1K run, tai chi class, karaoke night, family pancake breakfast and a dinner dance at the Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. A special Mass will be celebrated for Father Astudillo in honor of his 60th birthday.

"We want people to say 'Oh! So who came up with this great idea?'" says Lewis about the activities that run the gamut from free (pancake breakfast, tai chi class) to $110 per couple (dinner dance).

A grand drawing raffle will take place on the last day of the festival. The prizes include three hybrid cars, a cruise, department store certificates and a flat screen television.

And because the tickets are $25 each and maybe out of the range for some, event planners devised a plan to make the raffle affordable to all. For one dollar, folks can purchase a chance to win a $25 raffle ticket.

If all goes well, building the new church would commence in October. "This is our last hurrah to get people to come together and help support the church and the new building," says Father Astudillo. "This is it."