Will the quilt commemorate the reunion? Be raffled off to someone at the reunion?
If it's to commemorate the reunion, then a signature quilt is nice. There are different patterns, but I would choose a simple one since it's her first quilt. Maybe signature squares surrounded by sashings and a border.
Otherwise, for a first quilt, I often suggest rail fence as it's relatively easy, relatively forgiving, and teaches some basics about quilting. Even easier would be a jelly roll quilt, which has no matching of seams.