Peter Jacko was born on 18 November 1977 in Presov, in the diocese of Kosice, Slovakia. He entered the novitiate in Poprad in 1997, made his first profession on 15 August 1998 and later his perpetual profession on 10 July 2004 in Bratislava. He was ordained a priest on 17 June 2006 in his hometown.
He completed his philosophical and theological studies at the Salesian Pontifical University (UPS) in Rome. He then worked at the Salesian centre in Bratislava-Petržalka, where he was Director of the oratory and, among other things, developed the foundations of Salesian street work. He served for four years as Director and Parish Priest in the house in Trnava-Kopánka and since 2020 has been serving the community in Bratislava-Miletičova.
He was President of the development NGO "SAVIO" and the Province Delegate for Missions from 2012 to 2016.
He completed a certified training course on the protection of persons at the Faculty of Theology in Košice, in collaboration with the Gregorian University in Rome. Since 2020, he has been the Vice Provincial of the Salesians in Slovakia and responsible for the protection of minors and vulnerable persons.
Established as an autonomous province in 1939, then suppressed by the communist regime – despite the Salesians continuing their pastoral and evangelising work underground – the SLK Province flourished again with the fall of communism in 1989 and currently has 177 perpetually professed Salesians and 26 houses with a variety of works.
The Province of Slovakia is also responsible for missions in two other countries: Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation, in the Republic of Sakha-Yakutia. Overall, the Salesians of SLK run 17 parishes, 3 schools, 20 oratories, 19 youth centres and two specific pastoral services for the Rom population.
