The national memorial for Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., is set to be unveiled in a month. Nearly 100 members of the national Black Catholic joint conference got a preview Wednesday.

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"I grew up in the middle of the civil rights era and honestly I didn't think anything like this would ever happen, seriously,” said Ricky Sheppherd.

Ricky and Sharon Sheppherd are from St. Louis. Both remember watching Dr. King deliver his historical speech in Washington when they were children.

“To witness this, it is amazing to me,” Sharon Sheppherd said.

The main sculpture of King has not been revealed yet. Excerpts from his sermons and speeches are on display as part of the $120 million project.

"It's very emotional. My parents talked about Dr. King,” Sharon said. “Just to feel his presence here is overwhelming."

Sister Antona Ebo marched for African-American voting rights in Selma, Ala., in 1965 along with King. "It's a marvelous tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King,” she said.

Ebo carried a small piece of paper with the words hope, democracy and justice written on it, the themes the memorial was designed around.

"It means that we've said, that we've contributed to this country...even to the blood of our martyr,” she says.

The memorial will be dedicated next month, on August 28th, the 48th anniversary of the march and King’s “I have a dream speech.”