IT’S been 65 years in the making but now the forgotten story of a band of soldiers will be remembered for eternity.Yesterday Maureen Raunic of Ballarat and her brothers Frank and Barry Pomeroy remembered their father, Herbert John Pomeroy, who was one of 26 men killed at Kapooka in 1945.On a cold day in May a terrible explosion rocked Wagga, taking the lives of 27 trainee sappers of the First Battalion at the Royal Australian Engineers Training Centre.Laying a wreath at the newly dedicated Kapooka Tragedy Memorial, the siblings each took a moment to reflect on the sad loss of life.Just 10 months old when her father died, Mrs Raunic said the only memory she has of her father is hugging him.“I have a strong memory of running ... I walked very early and I remember running and grabbing onto army legs.”More than 40 family members of the men who perished on the day attended the dedication of a permanent memorial site, which Mrs Raunic said was overdue.“(The memorial) is very important. I first came on the 50th anniversary and then it was like going to Dad’s funeral. I was a wreck. We were not able to publicly acknowledge what happened.”“It’s open now after so long. We’ve got somewhere now to acknowledge.”The day gave families the chance to meet others affected by the incident, swap stories and research the event.A memorial stone was unveiled by Major General Steve Day and Major General Craig Williams before it was blessed.A specially written song titled 21 May 1945 was performed by violinist David O’Neil and RAAF college Group Captain Bob Rodgers was also presented.