It’s easy to see what the fire took away.

For those who live and work near the Marco Polo apartment complex, site of a horrific seven-alarm fire on July 14, the gutted, blackened remains of a half-dozen apartment units, some sealed behind plywood, some left starkly open, are still visible from a mile away.

For the residents who remain, the scores of empty spaces in the parking structure are a daily reminder of neighbors still displaced by the fire.

What remains, a sense of shared grief and deeper camaraderie among residents, was less obvious — until Saturday, when more than 100 Marco Polo residents turned out for a rare afternoon of carefree fun on the otherwise rarely used recreation deck atop the complex’s parking structure.

The fete was organized by Rotary International’s Hawaii District clubs, in consultation with the building’s manager and board, as a way to offer Marco Polo residents an opportunity to come together as a community.

“When it comes down to it, people want to be together,” said Bruce Fink, president of the Rotary Club of Pearl Harbor. “People have been great in dropping off food and other donations, but what’s been missing has been an opportunity for the people who live here to be together. Today, there’s no agenda, no politicians, just food, fun, friendship and fellowship.”

The event featured live music, food from a variety of community donors, and games and bouncers for children.

“It’s awesome,” said Matt Furuto, whose family has been displaced from its third-floor apartment due to water damage, mold and asbestos exposure. “At least for a day we can be back.”

Kristi Hirota-Schmidt, who was installed as president of the Rotary Club of West Honolulu just a day before the fire, has lived at the Marco Polo for 10 years. Like many of her fellow residents, she said she has felt in the aftermath of the fire sadness for those who were most directly affected and gratitude for having made it through intact.

“It used to be that when you got in the elevator, you’d look down and not say anything,” she said. “Now people ask each other how they were affected and how they’re doing.”

Woody Hall, who lives in a third-floor unit on the opposite end of where the fire occurred, attended the event with his wife and daughter. He said he appreciated the chance to visit with neighbors.

“It’s a nice, positive opportunity to reconnect,” he said. “Something like this is an uplift to the spirits.”

Fellow resident Karin Lynn said Saturday’s event was like “a big hug” for the many residents like her who have not been able to return to their apartments.

Lynn, who lives on the 27th floor, returned from a three-week vacation on the day of the fire. She’s spent the last month renting another unit in the complex from a friend who moved out prior to the fire and who now faces the daunting task of trying to sell her unit to a wary market.

Like many of her neighbors, Lynn said she is eager to move on with her life but is stuck in limbo until she is cleared to return to her apartment.

Saturday, at least, she was in the company of others who knew exactly how she felt.

“I don’t think the building has ever seen a party like this,” she said.