A steady stream of parents stopped off at the group of tables set up in the center of Kahala Mall yesterday with the same mission in mind: keep their kids safe.

Moms and dads filled out keiki ID packets that included identifying data such as height, weight, fingerprints, a photo, dental records and even a place to keep a lock of hair, for DNA.

The event was staged by the Missing Child Center-Hawai'i to help parents put all the vital information about their children in one place so if the child is ever abducted or lost, they can give authorities the needed information.

Stephanie Clark had her daughter sit at one of the tables to be fingerprinted. Clark told her 4-year-old that they needed "pictures of her fingers" in case she ever got lost.

"We travel a lot," Clark said. "It's very, very important to have this information. You never know when you'll need it."

The center, an office under the state Attorney General's Office, recommends that the information — especially the photo — be updated every six months.

In Hawai'i about 3,600 children a year are abducted or run away, said Michelle Nishizawa, assistant coordinator of the Missing Child Center-Hawai'i.

The center operates as a response agency when children go missing; offers information on the prevention of abductions and runaways; maintains a database on missing children; operates a telephone hotline to report sightings of missing children; and coordinates training for law enforcement and other professionals who deal with missing children.

"When a child is abducted by a stranger, the chances of being killed are high in the first three hours," Nishizawa said. "You don't want the parents to struggle trying to find out (child identification) information.

"Time really is of the essence."