The 82-year-old thought she was safe in the Newport home in Melbourne's west where she lived for 55 years, but her life - and the lives of her entire family - were turned upside down when a man forced his way in one night and brutally sexually assaulted her.
Within two years, she was again violently attacked.
The crimes have been haunting her loved ones for the past four decades.
Investigators are closing in on the perpetrator, believing he may have lived within streets of his vulnerable victims and may still be at large within the community.
Malcolm Lauder said his "five-foot nothing" grandmother was fiercely independent, stoic and died in 1993 hoping to see her attacker brought to justice.
"Somebody has gone into the sanctuary of her own home not once, but twice, where she should be the most protected that you should ever feel," Mr Lauder told reporters on Tuesday, anger palpable in his voice.
"I cannot express the disgust I have for this person."
The first attack happened on the night of September 22, 1981 when a man armed with a knife confronted her as she was in bed, took her into another room and sexually assaulted her.
She moved out afterwards but - determined not to be burden on anyone or let the attack change her life - she returned home.
Melbourne woman Jessie Grace Lauder was attacked twice in her home in the 1980s. (HANDOUT/VICTORIA POLICE)
Less than two years later, a man again attacked her when he forced his way into the house as she was getting ready for bed and sexually assaulted her in the lounge room.
The man referenced the earlier assault and told Ms Lauder not to call police.
Advances in DNA technology and tip-offs have provided vital clues, with police appealing to the woman's neighbours and anyone else with information about the assailant to help end the Lauder family's anguish.
Detective Inspector Mark Burnett said the perpetrator would now be at retirement age and he believed the man was at large in the community, although investigators are keeping an open mind about whether he is already in jail.
He said there were "persons of interest" but it's not believed the attacks on Ms Lauder were related to any other sex attacks in the area at the time.
"Jessie was a vulnerable older woman who should have been safe in her own home," he said.
"On the other hand, this man has lived the last 40 years with relative freedom and no repercussions yet for what he did.
"If somebody has knowledge of these incidents and has lived with that information over the past 40 years, now is the time to come forward."
Mark Burnett says "it's only a matter of time before we could be knocking on" the offender's door. (Diego Fedele/AAP PHOTOS)
The man was described as aged between 20 and 30 with dark hair, a fair complexion, about 175 centimetres tall and having an Australian accent.
It's believed he was wearing gloves, a beanie and work boots and had concealed his face.
Ms Lauder lived on Mason Street in Newport and investigators are particularly keen to hear from anyone who remembers a man matching the offender's description who may have lived on that street or surrounding roads including Johnston St, Oxford St, Lucius Lane and Cunningham Lane.
A $500,000 reward for information announced in 2016 remains on offer, or the option of indemnification from prosecution.
"The offender would now be at retirement age himself, it's only a matter of time before we could be knocking on his door," Det Insp Burnett said.
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