In my state they make Raffles harder than in other states, there are some very specific things you have to do here. Most groups go for a fund raising auction instead and that gives themes to work with for quilt donations.
Different parts of the country do have different styles, here something that is bright with white or dramatic with black would go over better than something in a civil war or lower contrast look. I think in general people don't go for the super scrappy look, you can certainly use dozens of fabrics but in a more controlled color palette. As a general public fund raiser, I'd avoid a very modern look (although contemporary of squares/rectangles is fine), and in my area I think quilters are more into 30s things than the rest of area.
So my first internal question is "what do I feel like making" and what are my best skills to show. My best skill is not my quilting so I'm not wanting big areas to show off that technique. My next idea is what fabric to use, and it happens I have a lot of blue. Then for public tastes I'd think maybe a Storm at Sea (always a favorite) or a Log Cabin (ditto). Log Cabin has a lot of variations on how you set the blocks. Maybe the heart variation in the Storm at Sea would connect it to the young girl, likewise you could set something into a log cabin setting.
I don't applique but people seem to really respond to an appliqued border, basic flowers and vine or hearts or whatever.