When Vicki Passmore moved to Fuquay-Varina seven years ago, having young children and working from home prevented her from expanding her circle far beyond her close friends.

Now that her children are a little older, Passmore went in search for a local group of women that meet occasionally for a girls’ night.

Friends suggested meetup.com. But that only produced groups in Raleigh and Cary. There wasn’t anything close to home.

Passmore knew she couldn’t be alone in wanting to get out in her own community for a night of fun.

Thus, the Real Housewives of Fuquay-Varina group was born.

“The main purpose is to get out and have fun, but keep it local,” Passmore said.

Within a day of making her own group on meetup.com, she had several women interested in getting involved.

Passmore started with some self-promotion and quickly the following snowballed. She visited the Fuquay-Varina Downtown Revitalization Association in early December and was amazed when information about her idea was posted on Facebook.

“All of the sudden, my email just blew up,” Passmore said. “To me, it just seems to have hit a need in the community.”

Contrary to the name, the group is not just for housewives. Passmore just used the popular “Housewives” shows to get the group some attention.

“I wanted something that people could remember,” she said. “I don’t expect any of the drama that goes along with (the shows).”

Actually, any woman 21 years old and up can take part in the group’s outings.

Although Passmore’s target audience is women in their 30s and 40s, she doesn’t want women older or younger to feel left out of the fun.

The group will have a kickoff event this month – a cupcake tasting and champagne toasting at the Cupcake Bite on Jan. 18 in Varina. All of the spots are filled now, but women can still sign up on the waiting list.

Before the RHOFV group, Passmore had never been in charge of event planning, so she said she’s open to suggestions. Already, women have jumped in with plenty of ideas like a cornhole tournament at the Garden Hut, wine and design night at Daniel’s Restaurant and Diva Night at Crazy Glaze Pottery.

“There’s just so much to do in town,” Passmore said.

Find more information about the Real Housewives of Fuquay-Varina and to register for future events, go to http://www.meetup.com/The-Real-Housewives-of-Fuquay-Varina/. The group also is on Facebook.

Women interested also can email Vicki Passmore at VLPassmore@aol.com.

Contact Kelly Griffith at kgriffith@heartlandpublications.com or 919-552-5675.