What would you do if a missing kid were right in front of you? Would you recognize the child? What if we gave you some hints?

TODAY'S TMJ4's John Mercure and the I-Team conducted a little experiment to find out how observant we are.

Hundreds of thousands of kids are reported missing each year.

Friends and family often use posters to get the word out. Our investigation found those posters may be a waste of time.

A child...on that poster…sitting just feet away.

We wanted to know if anyone would notice and what our observations might mean for all of us.

Joel Dhein with the Glendale Police Department has some advice.

"Observe and pay attention to what's going on because if it doesn't seem right, it usually isn't and that's where you can help us," Dhein said.

The Pettit National Ice Center is home to Olympic heroes, and on most nights, it's the hangout for hundreds of kids including hockey players, figure skaters and the parents who watch over them.

We outfitted the Pettit lobby with several hidden cameras, microphones and missing kid posters. We even put a camera inside one poster. We put some flyers on the doors leading into the Pettit. And then we brought in 9-year-old Jason; the boy on the posters. With his mom nearby, we sat Jason right next to his own image.

It didn't take long for someone to notice the poster on the lobby information counter.

One lady, Kelly, even commented out loud, "That child is missing. Sad."

She saw the poster, but not Jason just feet away.

We asked her about her observations or lack of observations.

John- "Did you notice the poster on the wall right there? Is that the one you saw?"

Kelly- "Yes. Oh my gosh. That's the child."

John- "Did you notice at all that he was sitting right there?"

Kelly- "No. I did not at all."

A short time later Laurie walked in.

Our poster cam caught her walking right by Jason. Once at the counter she even appeared to take a glance down at the flyer there. When she walked off, we approached her with one of the posters.

John- "What do you think of that?"

Laurie- "That's not good at all."

John- (Points at Jason) "Can you look right there?"

Laurie- SIGHS "There he is. I didn't see that."

Laurie was a tad bit embarrassed, but relieved that Jason is OK. "That's scary. It really is," she told us.

Some people were alert. Kathy walked in and noticed the posters immediately. Moments later, she spotted Jason and pointed him out to workers.

Kathy told us, "It's startling. You take it seriously and you try to help if you can."

Even those who did notice Jason seemed conflicted about what to do.

Heidi did a triple take as she saw Jason's poster and then Jason just feet away. She seemed to struggle with what to do. She walked around, fidgeted and finally spoke up.

"I'm like, 'I gotta say something cuz if somebody's looking for him… I'm a parent. I would be worried out of my mind,'" she told us.

We spotted a hockey coach named Brian who sat in the lobby for close to an hour. He was surrounded by Jason's posters. And he sat just feet from Jason.

The coach saw the posters but not Jason.

"We need to pay more attention to these things I guess. I didn't notice it until my son said, 'Hey dad, that's the kid sitting right there.' But I didn't notice it until he said it," Brian said.

Brian's situation backs up an interesting observation we made. Many parents rushed right past Jason, but their kids noticed our missing boy.

A young hockey player, Liam, spotted Jason. He immediately went up to Jason with no hesitation. Liam told us, "And then I asked him, 'Are you OK? Do you want me to call your parents? Do you need any help?'"

It was a great example of one boy reaching out to help another.

Joel Dhein is the crime prevention officer with the Glendale Police Department.

"The one thing that we preach a lot is be aware of your surroundings. We're creatures of habit and we get in that tunnel vision in walking around and doing our business in our daily lives. We just need to observe more and just be more aware of what's going on around us," Dhein told us.

Some noticed Jason sitting in the Pettit.

And some, like Jenny, didn't until we pointed it out.

John- "Did you notice our posters on the door?"

Jenny- SIGH "Yes."

One moment where we stop paying attention could be the difference for a child.

At least that's what Liz thought.

Liz- "It's a cruel world out there."

John- "And we all need to pay attention."

Liz- "Definitely. Definitely."

At the end of the day Jason was OK and safe, because we're the ones who made the posters…this time.