Ariel Martinez jokingly refers to the most compelling chapter of his childhood as a "Cinderella story" — first part only.

His tale has no fairy godmother, no royal ball, no triumphant moment of recognition, and none of the romantic grandeur associated with the famous fairy tale.

Only misery, humiliation, neglect, beatings, mental torment and harsh living conditions awaited the 11-year-old Honolulu boy after he was taken from his Manoa home one August day in 1991, along with his two sisters, ages 9 and 14, and taken to Mexico by their father, Felipe Martinez.

Felipe and Sharon Martinez had divorced in 1987. She received full custody of the children and came to Hawai'i to start a new life. Ariel had not laid eyes on his dad since he was 5, so he didn't recognize the stranger waving at him that day, while his mom was away from home.

In October of that year, the FBI launched a fugitive investigation against Felipe Martinez after a grand jury charged him with felony counts of custodial abduction. By that time, the children were in Mexico, and Ariel, who said he suffered the brunt of his father's constant abuse, was caught in a living hell.

It took nearly three years and three failed escape attempts before he was finally able to flee and make a daring escape that united him with his mother on May 9, 1994.

But today, on National Missing Children's Day, Martinez, 27, said it's important to keep in mind that, horrifying as his story is, it had a happy outcome. That isn't always the case. Martinez's two sisters — one of whom had helped her dad in the abduction, and the other whom Martinez said his father turned against Sharon Martinez — were never reunited with their mother.

U.S. Department of Justice statistics show that more than 2,000 children are reported missing every day in America. In Hawai'i, not counting runaway kids, on average about one child a week goes missing, according to recent statistics compiled by The Missing Child Center of Hawai'i.

The mission of that organization is to locate and recover missing children, reunite them with their families, and to prevent child abductions in Hawai'i, said Charlene Takeno, MCCH coordinator. She said the goal of National Missing Children's Day is to increase awareness about the subject.

"Part of the reason it was created was to recognize the work involved in the children who have been recovered, but also to remember the children that are still missing, and for their families to have hope," Takeno said.

Since law enforcement can't be everywhere, the public can play an active role as extra eyes and ears, Takeno said.

"For example, the way Ariel's mom found out the children had been taken was that a neighbor called to say they had seen the kids at the San Francisco Airport."

Martinez is now a project administrator for Lockheed Martin and a contractor for the Federal Aviation Administration. But he also is an active volunteer with the Friends of the Missing Child Center of Hawai'i, a nonprofit organization that helps fund MCCH. The group also works to educate the public about the myths and facts about missing children.

"We educate not only the children, but their parents and the general community about abduction and the dangers it poses," he said.

One of the major myths that needs to be dispelled is the danger of strangers, he said. The fact is, most child abductions are committed by folks who know the kids, parents or guardians.

Martinez said the thing that eventually saved him from his father was that he concluded he had to be brave and use his wits to figure a way to escape. But it wasn't easy. His father was prone to punish him for imagined infractions (Ariel said his father once split his back open with a television antenna for supposedly breaking a guitar that the boy had never touched).

Ariel said he was severely beaten for two of his three failed escape attempts. He lied his way out of a third, and was stunned when it actually worked. In time, he was able to locate his mother's telephone number. With the help of his mother and the U.S. State Department, Martinez was able to dupe his father and sisters into turning their heads long enough for him to make his break.

Parents who worry about protecting their children can take a few, simple precautions that will go a long way, he now says.

"I would say one of the most important things they can do for their children's survival is have them memorize some basic information. 'What are my parents' names; what's my phone number; where do I live?"

And finally, kids should be taught to simply ask for help from someone who seems to be trustworthy, such as a mother with a child.