Sara Evans: 'I Needed To Be With My Kids'

The "Dancing With The Stars" judges always encouraged country singer Sara Evans to come out of her shell and show more of her personality. They got their wish Tuesday night when Evans opened up about her divorce in a farewell interview.

Evans left the show last week because of a bitter divorce battle brewing between her and her husband, Craig Schelske.

She admitted that there were problems in their marriage when she signed on to do the twice-weekly reality show. But, she thought she could mend the relationship and do the show at the same time.

"I'm completely against divorce. My intention was to continue to try everything within my power."

Things began to worsen after Evans received a report last Tuesday about pornographic photos found on her husband's computer.

Somehow, she was able to make it through the show that night.

"The good thing is that I'm so used to performing," said Evans "and as you know, as entertainers we have that ability to just sort of flip the switch. Turn it on, do the dance and, you know, make it through the day. That's what I was hoping was going to happen throughout the entire life of the show."

But, working on the show and going through the process of divorce proved too difficult for Evans. After the results show on Wednesday night, Evans acknowledged that "something happened" at her home.

"It was something personal and traumatic and hard for my children," she said. "Things went drastically downhill, 100 miles an hour."

She said that she realized at that moment that she needed to be at home with her children, and not on the dance floor.

"I needed to be right there," she said, "to look at my son at all times to see the expression on his face and, you know, see if he's crying. I put him on the phone with our pastor immediately. I knew that nothing in my career, no television show, nothing was more important than that."

As previously reported, Evans filed for divorce last week alleging that her husband committed adultery, was verbally and emotionally abusive, drank excessively and frequently watched pornography in their home.

Schelske denies the charges.

In a statement released Tuesday, Schelske said "... my attorneys have put ABC on notice that I deny the false allegations in the divorce complaint, that those false allegations should not be repeated in the broadcast and that Sara and ABC should consider the impact of her televised statement on our children, whose well-being remains my highest concern."

The country singer's departure had an effect on the show's other stars. "Sara was cool and I miss her a lot," said fellow contestant Mario Lopez. "We dedicate this night to Sara and wish her nothing but the best."

One person who will have a chance to work with Evans again is her professional dance partner on the show, Tony Dovoloni. Evans announced that she's tapped him to choreograph her tour next year.

Evans closed by thanking her fans for being supportive.

"I have felt so much love and support from the fans, even before all this happened," she said. "It's so humbling and I'll never forget it. I will never forget every second of this experience. I just want to, you know, thank everybody from the bottom of my heart and I will come back for the finale if I'm invited."
By Judy Faber